Mates For Eternity
by xxLuAshxx
Summary: Male vampires are very possessive and dominant of their mates. Bella Swan is a vampire before she moves to the small town of Forks. What happens when she moves to Forks? *POSSESSIVE EDWARD & LEMONS. STEPHANIE MEYER OWNS TWILIGHT* R
1. Boring, Lifeless, Alone

Chapter 1: Boring, Lifeless, Alone

I licked the last drops of blood off my lips as the body of the drained panther dropped from my hands with a muted _thud_. I stood gracefully as I wiped my hands against my jeans to clean off the dirt which I had gained from fighting the beast. I closed my eyes as the cool night air whipped against my face, making my brunette hair swirl around my face, and sending the trees into a shudder.

I sighed as I ghosted through the trees. My bare feet, not making a sound, guided me through the wilderness. The crickets sang and the wolves howled. I glanced up and the night sky. The full moon hung in all its glory, surrounded by millions of stars. I sighed again, my breath exhaling out of my mouth like a gust of wind.

I moved my feet at a faster pace when suddenly everything around me turned to a green blur. I sprinted for about five minutes, the moss being squashed underneath my feet, when suddenly, two robins flew past me. I froze in my tracks as I gazed at the robins, weaving in and out of the trees together, forming what can only be described as a dance. It was obvious that they must have been partners.

I cocked my head to the side as I considered this. When animals mated, it was for life. They do not look for another partner, ever. When vampires mate, it is for eternity. You know when you have found your mate, because as soon as you look at them, you want to submit yourself to them in everyway. Sometimes, two males will claim that one female is their mate, in which case they have to fight 'til the death. It is never that two females like one male, because male vampires are exceptionally stronger than female vampires. Or so I heard.

Male vampires are very possessive of their mates and are more dominant in their relationships. They do not even let another male _look _at their mate unless the other male is already mated. 75% of fights in the vampire world are males fighting over a female. And if you see one of these fights, you must _never _get involved.

As I was thinking, I recalled my life story.

I, Isabella Marie Swan, have been on God's clean Earth for 21 years and I have spent 4 of those years in by 17 year old body. How is that possible, you ask? Well, to put it simply, I am a vampire.

I do not drink human blood, but I live off the blood of animals. Ever since I was changed, I have tried to keep every shred of humanity that I can. I want to avoid hurting humans as I used to be one myself. I am pretty young for a vampire so I haven't had a chance to explore much; I have been kept in the confines of the forest. All the myths about vampires you have heard are not true. I do not sleep in a coffin or turn to ash in the sun. In fact, I do not need sleep at all, and my skin _sparkles_ in the sunlight.

I hadn't realised that I had started running again until I came to my lake. I crouched and looked down at my reflection. My brunette hair hung down to the middle of my back in soft waves. My skin was incredibly pale and my features were perfect. My golden eyes gazed back at me and faint bruises were under them, proving that I had recently fed; I was the perfect predator.

I stood up, away from the river, and observed what I was wearing: a blood-covered ice blue cocktail dress which finished mid-thigh. I shook my head as I dived into the water, willing it to wash away the blood. I held my breath and submerged myself under the cold blue and shook my dress.

After an hour, I resurfaced and swan to the waters edge. I pulled myself up, out of the water, and rinsed out my hair, only then to lie down on the grass, gazing up at the sky once again until I was thirsty.

This was how I had been living for the past 5 years. This was all my existence now was.

Boring.

Lifeless.

Alone.


	2. Forks, Washington

Chapter 2: Forks, Washington

I knew I couldn't go on like this, lying here day in, day out with nothing to do except hunt and wash. Whatever happened to the old Bella who was strong and independent? Who did whatever she could, whenever she could?

Oh yeah, she got changed into a vampire.

I groaned and rolled over onto my stomach, the moisture from the ground slowly seeping through my dress. I buried my face in the ground, thinking. I needed to do something; anything! But I was too scared. I was safe here as no one could touch me. No humans could get hurt because of me if I was here.

But where was here? Come to think of it, I didn't have a clue where I was! Which state was I in? Was civilisation near? I doubted that. I unearthed my face and placed my chin on my elbows. I hooked my left ankle over my right ankle and lifted them up in the air. I was still undecided. I wanted to explore the world, meet other vampires, and hear their stories.

But I would never tell anyone about how I got changed into this. _Never_. My body shuddered by just mentioning it and all my thoughts scattered all over my brain. I could feel my breakdown coming as the venom pooled in my eyes and I started hyperventilating.

"No, no, no." I whispered as I covered my face with my hands, willing my emotions to get back in line. I started taking deep breaths as to calm myself down. I swore to myself that I would never think of it. I refused to remember how I got myself damned to this life out of my own stupidity. I still couldn't stop my trembling form, so I turned over onto my back and screamed out into the heavens. My body curled towards the sky as I let out all my anger trough mindless shrieks.

After an hour or so of having my breakdown, I slowly sat up and looked at my surroundings. I could see streaks of pink and orange across the sky, accompanied by a mass of yellow coming from the east.

"And so a new day begins." I murmured as I watched the sun rise. It really was a beautiful sight. I heard the birds begin their morning song, spreading a sense of peace and tranquillity throughout the forest.

As the sun rose higher and higher, my skin started to sparkle faintly. I lay on my back allowing my hair to fan out around me and raised my right arm in front of me. I turned it this way and that and watched how the sunlight bounced of my diamond skin, throwing an array of colours into the forest.

Coincidently, two robins flew into the clearing that I was in. I didn't know if it was the same two that I saw before. I gently lowered my arm so it lay across my stomach as I observed the robins flapping about. It seemed amazing how they could go to any heights they wanted. They could fly around the world with the motion of their wings. They were _free_.

I decided then and there that I was going to explore the world. I wanted to be free too. I wanted to discover things for myself and have an adventure, not to mope around here for the rest of eternity.

Within a sixteenth of a second, I bolted up and started pacing. The robins shrieked and flew away but I didn't care at that moment; I was planning.

I needed to find a town or even a small village; anywhere where I could know where I was. I looked down at myself and sighed. My dress was drenched and thick with mud. Obviously I would need a new change of clothes too. But how? I didn't have any money! I groaned as I sank back down onto the soggy earth. I sat cross-legged and stared across the lake.

_Maybe I could get a job?_ I thought. I shook my head. _Too risky._

_Maybe you could borrow some? _My breath caught in my throat. _Steal?_ Was that the only way for me to get clothes? To _steal _them? There must be another way.

_There is no other way!_ My mind hissed at me. _It will be simple. Run into a closed clothes shop, steal a few clothes and a map, run back here and change your clothes and then go wherever the hell you want using the map!_

Before I knew what I was doing, I ran North in hopes of finding a town. I didn't care what it looked like as long as it had a clothes shop and a place with maps. I ran at lightening speed, like a cheetah, through the forest, smacking away branches that got in my way. I jumped over boulders and fallen trees. At one point, I climbed up a tree and started jumping through the tree tops.

I travelled through the forest for four hours, hopelessly trying to track down any humans that could lead me to a city. Just as I was about to give up, I heard the roaring engine of a car. I froze in my tracks and quickly dived into the nearest bushes. I peeked through the leaves to find the car speeding down the road. Without a moment's hesitation, I followed it at a steady pace. The road wound like a snake, slithering through the land.

After twenty minutes, I started to make out buildings in the distance. Too excited to stop myself, I sped in front of the car, still under the cover of the trees, and dashed as quickly as I could to the city. I came to an abrupt stop as I realised that the sun was still out and I would have to wait for about ten hours until I could go out. With a huff I stalked through the tops of the trees until I found a dress shop. I settled in the canopy where no one could see me, and waited.

I stared as couples entered the clothes shop and came out with bags of clothes. It was comical how many of the men seemed reluctant to go in and then ended up carrying most of the stuff for their wives. I chucked as they struggled with the weight.

Before I knew it, the shop was closing and the night had returned. I saw that there were an array of cameras pointed around the shop, and no doubt there were some inside of it too. I would have to take them out.

When the streets deserted, which took a while because of some drunken teenagers, I leapt gracefully from the canopy onto the roof of the shop. Whilst there, I pulled out the wires from the cameras. I climbed down onto the ground and went to the back of the shop. There was a grey double door which I assume led to the storage room.

_Perfect! _I thought.

I tried pulling the door gently, but it wouldn't budge. I then moved to pushing it, but I still had no luck. I was staring to get a little frustrated now.

_Oh, what the heck? _I thought and kicked the doors as hard as I could. They flew off their hinges with a huge groan and collapsed onto the floor. I smirked but it was soon wiped off my face when the alarm went off.

"Shit!" I hissed. I darted into the shop and through another set of doors. I quickly punched the cameras out and grabbed whatever clothes I could get my hands on. With one arm full, I grabbed a carrier bag and filled it. I jumped over the counter and smashed the cupboards under the desk over. And to my luck, there was a map.

_Result! _I praised in my head. I could hear sirens going off in the distance so I quickly snatched up the map and my bag and smashed through the display window, bolting back out into the forest. I easily picked up my scent, freesias with a hint of strawberry, and sprinted all the way back to my clearing.

When I got back to my "home", I dumped my bag onto the ground and pulled out the contents. I stripped the dress off my bodice and threw it to one side. I had managed to grab a couple of bras and some underwear from the shop so I swiftly put it on. I then resulted to pulling on a baggy grey Mickey Mouse t-shirt, with dark blue skinny jeans, black converse shoes and a plum hoodie that came down mid-thigh. Amazingly, it all fit.

Once I was sure I was comfy, I placed my torn dress into the bag and dumped it into the lake and then tore off all the price tags on my current clothes. I picked up the map off the floor and held it up. I could see that someone had circled Canada.

_Is that where I am? _I mused, _In Canada?_

I shook my head as I studied the map further. I placed my finger on Canada and trailed it down through the rest of America. My finger was currently placed in Washington when a name popped out at me.

**Forks.**

Forks? I'm sure I had heard of that name before. I squeezed my eyes shut as I repeated the name Forks, Washington in my head, trying to remember where I had heard it before.

Bingo! I remember now! We were taught about it at high school. It was one of the smallest towns in the U.S and was one of the rainiest places in America, which was also surrounded by a vast majority of dense forest. Why, Forks seemed a perfect place to start. I smiled as I thought about all the things I could do. Maybe I could finally graduate high school. I never got the chance since I was changed…

I shook my head of my vile transformation. I memorised which routes I would take and when I should hunt. It should take me about two days on foot to get there. I folded up the map and placed it in my jean pocket. With my new found excitement, I bounded away into the forest.

Forks, Washington, I hope you're ready for me.


	3. Organising My Life

Chapter 3: Organising My Life

I had been trying to track down Forks for two days, stopping every now and then to check the map. Last time I checked I was in Idaho, so I must have been in Washington by now. My hair whipped behind me as I bolted through the dense forest, narrowly missing shrubs and trees as frustration started to take hold of me. Light rain drops started to hit the earth, only to pound heavier until it was like a storm.

I groaned in annoyance and came to a stand-still. I raised my head to the sky, allowing the beating water to assault my face and closed my eyes. I welcomed the moisture as it dripped down my face and dampened my hair. The cool water felt slightly warm against my ice-cold skin, feeling like a warm shower to a human. With a sudden rush of silliness, I spread my arms out and started twirling around, branches and twigs snapping underneath me. I giggled as I quickened my pace and kept spinning until I looked like nothing but a blur, but with my perfect eyesight, I could still see every leaf on every branch with perfect clarity.

After I was fully soaked through, I stopped my spinning but kept laughing as I was still slightly giddy. Once my laughter died down, my original frustration came crashing down on me. Low growls started erupting from my throat as I ripped out the map from my pocket. I glared down at the offending item as I trailed my route again. Suddenly, the colour from the map started running and the paper became soggy and wafer thin in my grip.

"NO!" I screamed as I shredded the map into a million pieces within milliseconds. In my fit of rage, I clutched the nearest tree and uprooted it, throwing it into another and with a groan, they both collapsed onto the floor, mud splashing a few metres high before dropping back down. Without thinking, I charged through the forest, smashing down any object that got in my way. I was on the war path so I didn't notice how the forest was starting to thin out. Dead, fallen leaves crunched beneath my feet and I childishly kicked them whilst sprinting.

Suddenly, I froze. I didn't dare breath. There were no longer trees surrounding me, but a _road_. I blinked several times before I dashed back into the edge of the forest, in case I got caught by a human. I listened closely to the noises surrounding me and found no trace of humans. I breathed a sigh of relief and turned to my left, when suddenly, a big wooden sign with a circled tree caught my eye. I scanned the writing with my eyes, squinting slightly through the downpour and couldn't believe what it read.

_THE CITY OF FORKS WELCOMES YOU_

I was sure that my eyes were the size of saucers, but I couldn't help the big cheesy grin that plastered my face. I leapt in the air and punched it with my right fist. A sense of accomplishment and pride washed through my being.

With my lips still tugged up at the side, I raced by the narrow road which would lead me to the city of Forks.

As I travelled, I realised that there was a lot of wildlife here and a lot of green. Not that I was complaining as it was the perfect place for me to blend in, but I wondered how the humans felt about having a forest placed in your back garden. I turned my head to face forward when small buildings caught my eye. I stopped my running and gazed in wonder as I observed the little town. My eyes drank in everything; the people who were rushing to get inside, the buildings that were gradually darkening with the rain, the puddles that were forming in the dips in the roads and pavements…it was beautiful.

I stored the information in my brain for later. Right now, my main aim was to find accommodation and role in for school. I pulled my hood over my head, shoved my hands in my jean pockets and sauntered down the streets, being careful not to make any fast movements or to even breathe; I couldn't risk the humans like that. I made sure to keep my head down so that no one would notice me; not that there was anyone around _to _notice me. As I was walking, I spotted a "For Sale" sign. I glanced up at the house to assess it. It was a detached, small oak cabin. It had very few windows and a front door, with wooden steps leading up to it. I assumed that, because of its size, it was only big enough for one. I listened in and found no heartbeat or breathing coming from the cabin; it seemed that it had been abandoned. With a shrug of my shoulders, I marched up to the sign, plucked it from the ground and walked up the stairs to the front door. I wrapped my fingers around the handle and gently twisted it it. With a small click, it opened and I pushed the door and stepped inside to my new home.

The welcoming smell of pine and oak filled my senses as I breathed in the smell, relishing it. As I looked around, I realised that the cabin was one story, with rooms that all connected to the hall. I padded across to the room on my left and opened it. It appeared to be a study with an oak table with a laptop, phone and lamp perched on top of it. Across the room was a bookshelf filled with dusty books that looked like they hadn't been touched in years.

_Not too shabby…_ I thought.

I trailed into a bathroom, complete with sink, cabinet, shower and bath tub. The tiles in the room were a warm peach colour that looked very inviting, with soft, fluffy towels hanging off racks. I opened the cabinet to find shampoo, soap and conditioner in there. How odd. I then peeked into the bedroom and found a queen sized bed placed in the middle of it with a large set of drawers pressed against the far left wall. I waltzed into the living room where three loveseats sat with a widescreen T.V and a fireplace, complete with an old rugged mat in the middle of the room. Connected to the living room was the kitchen. I was surprised as I checked the fridges and cupboards and found that they were fully stocked.

_Maybe whoever left intended on coming back? _I shook my head of the thought. I had now found suitable accommodation and now needed to enrol into high school. Great.

I zoomed back into the study and booted up the laptop. I drummed my fingers against the desk as I waited for it to come to life. Once it did, I searched on the Forks High School website and found the number. I picked up the phone and punched in the numbers and waited as the phone started ringing on the other end. After five rings, someone picked up.

"Hello, this is Forks High School. How may I help you?" An elderly woman kindly asked.

"Hello, my name is-" I quickly thought of a name-"Matthew Swan. I was wondering if my daughter would be able to enrol into your high school?" I asked, feigning my voice to sound like a father.

It must have worked, because she eagerly replied, "Oh, of course! We would be delighted to take in your daughter! You just need to give us a few details and then she can be officially rolled in!"

She asked me for the name and age of "my daughter" and went through some health checks. After twenty minutes of agonising conversation, she finally said her goodbyes.

"Well, if Isabella would like to start on Monday, I'm sure she would feel right at home here."

"Yes, thank you. I shall tell Isabella the minute she gets home. Goodbye." I hung up the phone before she had a chance to answer me. I quickly dashed into the bathroom and eagerly started what I ad wanted to do for a long time…TAKE A BATH!

I let the hot water fill the tub as I grabbed the shampoo, conditioner and soap from the cabinet and laid out some towels. When the bath was full, I stripped off my dirty clothes and eased into the water.

"Ahh…" I sighed; it felt so good against my skin. As I soaked myself in the hot water, I contemplated about school. Was I making the right decision? What would people think of me? Would I blend in? Would I be cast away? I would need new clothes.

Before I could debate any further, the scalding water relaxed my muscles, making me slightly drowsy. I slid further into the water, submerging my head under the suface and closed my eyes in my peaceful mood.


	4. Forks High School

Chapter 4: Forks High School

Once I finally managed to drag myself out of the comfort of the bath, I wrapped a towel around my wet bodice and glided into the bedroom. I sat on the corner of the queen sized bed and stared at the floor. I should have known that this would happen. I had no other clothes to wear apart from my scruffy outfit that I stole two days ago. I huffed in annoyance as I fell back onto the comfy bed, my arms stretched out beside me. The simple thing to do was to steal a bunch of clothes from one of these shops, but I couldn't picture myself doing it. This place seemed too…cosy, and I couldn't bring myself to upset these people by breaking into one of their shops.

I groaned as I rolled off my bed. There was only one other thing I could do. I padded back into the bathroom and filled up the tub with warm water. Whilst doing that, I threw the soap into the water and started mixing them together to create nice, warm soapy water. I shut off the water and reluctantly placed in my dirty clothes into the tub. I grabbed hold of the material and rubbed it against the soap, trying to clean it.

Ten minutes passed by and I was finally done. I was glad that my method worked and I now had clean clothes to put on for school. I admit that they weren't perfect, but they would have to do. I hung the soggy material over the shower curtain rail where they could drip dry, ready for Monday. I walked into the living room and sat down on one of the loveseats, staring blankly at the fireplace.

There was nothing to do now but wait…

xoxox

Monday morning came around sooner then I thought. Before I knew it, I was taking a quick shower, making myself look presentable for school. I stepped out of the shower and into a towel, drying the water droplets off my body. Once that was done, I wrapped the towel around my hair and whizzed into the bedroom to put on my finally dried clothes. I had gone hunting last night just to be safe and managed to avoid getting a speck of mud or blood on me, which I was quite proud of. Once I tied up my converse shoes, I twisted the towel on my hair, intending on getting all the moisture out of my hair and then un-wrapped it. My hair was still a little damp as it fell down my back, but I knew that with a good run, it would dry. I didn't have a bag to pack so I simply grabbed a pen that I found hidden between the books in the study and headed outdoors.

As I stepped outside, I shut the door behind me and started into the forest. I didn't need to lock the door because if anyone did break into my house, then I would simply hunt them down. Before I got to the edge of the forest, what I saw on the pavement made me freeze. A young mother and her little girl were walking down the street, hand-in-hand. They looked at each other and smiled in true affection as the mother leaned down to kiss the girl's cheek, causing her to squeal. I choked back a sob. I had lost the opportunity to become a mother once I was changed, for vampires couldn't breed. My body was forever frozen as this; a seventeen year old and therefore I could not conceive children. Suddenly, the little girl turned to look at me. She smiled with her dimples and pointed at me.

"Pretty!" she announced. I gave her a wobbly smile and sprinted into the trees, leaving the little girl confused as to whether she really saw me or not. I wiped away the non-existent tears as I ran and took deep breaths; I needed to be composed for school. The wind blew through my hair, making it dry in a matter of mere minutes.

I slowed down my pace and was welcomed by a sign that stated:

_FORKS HIGH SCHOOL, HOME OF THE SPARTANS_

I rolled my eyes and chuckled at the message. I paused in the shadow of the trees momentarily to smooth out my hair and clothes before casually walking through the parking lot. There weren't many people there as I had come early; only the teachers were here. I glanced at the school and to me, it looked like a cluster of small buildings, connected together using paths. I walked swiftly into the room that stated "Main Office".

As I entered the clammy room, the smell of plastic and grapes assaulted my nose. I subtly scrunched my nose as I waltzed towards the desk where a plump, red haired woman was typing away furiously at her computer. I stood right in front of her, but she didn't seem to notice me. I cleared my throat to gain her attention and she jumped before looking up at me in alarm. I took in a scorching breath, her smell of toffee and banana making the venom pool in my moth. I swallowed it back as best as I could.

"Hello," I greeted in my smooth voice, "my name is Isabella Swan and I have come to pick up my schedule." I flashed a dazzling smile. She seemed a little bit dazed but a flash of recognition shone in her eyes and she perked up almost immediately.

"Oh yes!" she cried. She whizzed around on her computer chair and shuffled through a few papers before pulling two out of a pile with a pink slip.

"Here you go. This is your schedule with a map of the school. You need to get this slip signed by all of your teachers and hand it to me by the end of the day, ok dear?" she asked handing me the papers. I nodded my head at her and twirled around to go back outside. "Oh, and welcome to Forks High School!" she called after me. I nodded in response and trailed outside. By now, many students had piled into the lot with their ancient looking cars. They all turned to stare at me and I could hear the whispers already.

"Woah, she it HOT!"

"Check out that ass!"

"She looks just like the Cullens." That one made me pause for a moment. Who were the Cullens? I glanced around but shrugged my shoulders and took out my schedule to memorise it:

_**English – B4 - Mr. Mason**_

_**Government – B7- Mr. Jefferson**_

_**Trigonometry – B2 - Ms. Lawrence**_

_**History – B5 - Mr. Haywood**_

_**Lunch**_

_**Biology – B6 - Mr. Banner**_

_**Gym – Gymnasium - Coach Clapp**_

I folded up my schedule and headed straight for Building 4, ignoring the stares I was receiving. A Silver Volvo caught my eye but I shrugged my shoulders and carried on to my first class.

I entered the English room just as the bell went. All conversation in the room ceased and all gazes averted to me. I kept my head low as I walked up to Mr. Mason, eyes following my every move. He looked in his mid fifties with a balding head and grey piercing eyes. He smelt like old newspaper and my nose shied away from the scent. He had a big, sharp nose which could only be used to look down on people, preferably students.

"Excuse me, sir. I need you to sign this." I handed him my slip. He glanced at it briefly before turning his head upwards to look at me. His eyes widened as they roamed down my body and I had to stop myself from retching. He signed my slip and told me to sit at the back of the class.

_This is going to be a long day _I thought.

The morning passed uneventfully and I met a few people. A blue eyed, baby faced boy with blonde hair with way too much gel called Mike who had a crush on me already, a boy called Eric whose hair was slick with oil, a bubbly talkative girl called Jessica who I didn't really like that much and a quiet and shy girl named Angela. She was probably the only one I wanted to be friends with. Jessica invited me to sit at their table at lunch and I reluctantly agreed. All through the day I had to fight the burn in my throat, and it was painful.

Jessica was walking me through the congested corridors to the cafeteria when a sweet scent hit my nose and I stumbled slightly from the impact.

"Are you ok?" Jessica asked with false concern in her voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I replied. But I was anything but fine. Jessica shrugged and continued to babble mindlessly about a stupid dance coming up. But I couldn't stop the panic that swam through my body and my mind kept on repeating one sentence.

_There are other vampires attending Forks High School._


	5. Edward Cullen

Chapter 5: Edward Cullen

My body went into full panic mode and the phrase swirled around in my head. I started to tremble slightly and my vision blurred around the edges. I tried taking deep breaths to calm and reassure myself, but that only made things worse as their scents hit my nose. From what I could smell, there were five of them. That meant that I was outnumbered if it came to a fight, which it probably would knowing my luck. Never the less, I continued to trail after an unobservant Jessica as we made our way to the cafeteria. I saw her curly locks bobbing into the room whilst I paused for a moment and inhaled. The scent was strongest here so I assumed that they were already in there.

_Ok Bella, just relax. They have no reason to hurt you. Now, calmly walk through the doors, grab some food and sit wherever Jessica does._ My mind told me. I absentmindedly nodded and pushed open the double doors.

I kept my head down as I joined the lunch cue. I could feel everyone's eyes on me and all conversation stopped. I pretended that I was very interested in the linoleum floor that silently squeaked under my feet. When it was my turn to choose my food, I grabbed the first thing my hands touched and paid for it with money that I stole off Mike. I knew I shouldn't have done it, but how else would I keep up pretences? Everyone picked up their conversations but I still saw a few people look over at me. I glanced up from my lashes quickly and spotted Mike's gang, which included Jessica, waving me over. I sluggishly dragged my feet to their table and plopped down in between Mike and Angela.

"Hey Bella." Mike greeted me in an over cheerily voice. It was so obvious that he liked me, and the big goofy grin that was plastered on his face only added to that fact. I offered him a small smile in return. I could feel someone's eyes on me so I turned around and saw a glimpse of Jessica glaring at me before she sniffed and turned away to talk to a blonde girl. So, it seems that Jessica likes Mike. I shrugged it off and started to pick at the slimy pizza that I had picked up. Yuck.

"So Bella," Mike started, "how's your first day going?"

"It's ok I guess." I mumbled. I still hadn't forgotten the fact that there were vampires stalking in this very room. Besides myself.

"Uh-uh." Mike replied. I sighed as I pushed my meal away from me.

"You're not eating?" Jessica asked, giving me a quizzical look.

I shook my head at her. "I'm not hungry." She snorted and turned to her friend.

"She's probably anorexic." She whispered, not meaning for me to hear. I narrowed my eyes at her before looking around the cafeteria. I observed all of the different humans at tables and how they interacted with each other. Some were laughing, some were talking, whilst others were just full on eating. I sighed as I continued looking around the crowded lunch room.

But that was when I saw _him_.

He was sitting in one of the isolated tables in the corner of the room with, who I presumed to be, his coven. His grey t-shirt was tight against his body, showing off all his perfect, strong muscles. He was wearing a pair of black jeans that hung loosely on his hips, and trailed down to his trainers. My eyes trailed up to his face where I saw his tousled bronze hair on top of his head where a few bits flopped down into his eyes and my fingers twitched, wanting to run themselves through it. I avoided his eyes but gazed at his features; his strong jaw line, high cheek bones, perfectly angled nose and full, kissable lips. I was sure at that moment that he was sculpted by angels. Before I could control myself, I looked into his eyes. They were deep pools of gold full of mystery and wonder.

It was only then that I realised that he had been staring at me the whole time. He had an unfathomable expression across his face. But as I looked into his eyes again, I saw possessiveness and…_love_. Can it be true? Was he my mate? I quickly rid my thoughts of that subject.

_Of course he's not your mate! _I thought to myself. _You don't even deserve to live after what you did, let alone be mated!_

My lips trembled as I looked down. I heard a low gasp and looked back around and saw the God-like creature with concern written all over his face, but I could still see the hints of possessiveness. As I gazed longer at him, I could feel a fire open up inside of me. Desire took over me and I wanted to submit myself to him in everyway possible. I unconsciously leaned towards him and saw that he did the same. Right then there was no one else in the room. Just us.

"Bella? Who are you looking at?" Jessica's squeaky voice interrupted. I whizzed back around to face her.

"Umm, who are they?" I asked, inclining my head towards the table with Adonis. I glanced up at him and he looked quite angry and jealous, but still staring at me.

"Oh!" Jessica gushed. "They're the Cullens. They're Doctor and Mrs. Cullens foster kids and moved down here from Alaska, like, two years ago. The big one is Emmett and he's with Rosalie, the blonde one who looks like she should be a supermodel. Then the little pixie girl is Alice, she's really weird. She's with Jasper, the blonde guy who looks like he's in pain." I nodded my head in vague interest; I only had eyes for the man who was still staring at me, making me feel all warm and fuzzy.

"What about him?" I questioned impatiently; I wanted to know as much about my personal angel as I possibly could.

"Oh, that's Edward." She giggled. _Edward…_my mind breathed. The perfect name for the perfect man. "He's gorgeous isn't he?" I had to bite back a growl, "But don't waste your time. He doesn't date." She sniffed and turned away whilst I chuckled silently, wondering when he rejected her. I peeked through my lashes and saw Edward's eyes trained on me. They looked so warm and inviting.

"You don't want to hang around with them Bella. You've got us." Mike stated happily as he slung his arm casually over my shoulder. A low bass growling sounded followed by a loud bang. The humans only heard the bang but we all turned to look at where the noise had come from.

My eyes focused on Edward Cullen. It seemed that he had leapt off his chair and was now sending murdering glares to Mike. His hands were balled into tight fists and his teeth were slightly bared. His eyes had darkened to almost pitch black. He started to stalk up to us, stopping right next to me. He leaned over the table so he was looking down at Mike who was quivering in fear.

"Take your filthy hands off her." Edward ordered, each word laced with venom and pure hatred. Mike silently obeyed, ripping his arm off me and placing it by his side.

"Good." Edward approved icily. "Now, if you so much as think about her again, I will make sure that you suffer a slow and painful death. Am I clear?" Mike didn't hesitate in nodding his head rapidly. Edward gave him one last long glare before taking my hand and pulling me up next to him. "And that goes for all of you." He stated, glaring at Eric and Tyler whilst letting go of my hand and wrapping a possessive arm around my waist. "She is _mine_." He hissed before pulling me along with him. I didn't fail to notice the jolts of electricity running through me from where our skin touched and I embraced the feeling. Everyone was staring at us with open mouths as Edward pulled me through the doors of the cafeteria which led outside.


	6. Isabella Swan

Chapter 6: Isabella Swan

**EPOV:**

I gazed out of the classroom window, watching as the rain splattered across the glass. I was currently seated in my English class, eagerly awaiting the sound of the bell so I could escape Mrs. Davies' lecture on Romeo and Juliet. I had studied this book at least twenty times and I honestly didn't see the appeal in it. I didn't get Romeo's character at all.

I was brought out of my musings when the shrill bell rang, signalling lunch and I almost ran at vampire speed just to get out of this dull room. I swiftly collected my 'props' and glided out into the corridor. The student body were crowding the narrow passage as their hungry stomachs rumbled, needing to be fed. But as soon as the mindless teenagers saw me, they all backed up, allowing me to cut through straight to the canteen. Although we did have exceptional beauty which could lure in innocent humans, their instincts that were buried deep inside of them, urged their bodies to stay away from me and my family. They weren't consciously aware that they were doing it, but just looking at my family and I screamed the word 'DANGER'.

I sighed as I entered the lunch room and found my family waiting for me, their food placed in front of them. Of course, we weren't going to eat the stuff; we would just have to choke it back up later, as our bodies couldn't digest human food. Not to mention the taste was awful! No, me and my family only like to consume one thing.

Blood.

The blood of the humans was sweet and it was very hard to resist. However, me and my family were among the few who are resisting. We do not live on the blood of humans. Instead, we drink the blood of animals. The only known vampires to live on this diet are us and the Denali's. We like to call ourselves "vegetarians" as a little inside joke and it explains as to why our eyes are golden and not the traditional ruby red.

I pulled out my chair and sat beside Emmett who was thinking about what he and Rosalie would do when they got home.

"Emmett, please." I said, disgusted with the images he was creating in his mind. He grinned cheekily at me.

"Edward, you need to get laid." He announced, and only a second after, my fist connected with his face. Jasper sent a wave of calm over the table and I embraced the feeling.

"Thank you Jasper." I told him. He gave me a small smile and nodded his head. Jasper's gift came in handy at times and was very powerful. Although not powerful enough for Alice, who was bouncing in her chair. Her hyper mood must have spread because Jasper groaned.

"What is it Alice?" I asked. She was always like this when she had seen something exciting. She shook her head.

"You'll find out soon!" she squealed whilst clapping her hands. I tried to tap into her mind to see what she was thinking, but she was repeating the Portuguese national anthem backwards.

"Alice!" I groaned in frustration.

"All good things come to those who can wait." She giggled and winked at me. I sighed. I knew I wasn't going to get anything out of Alice; she was a stubborn little thing. Suddenly, the buzz in the canteen ceased and all heads turned towards the door. I inclined my head a little in that direction, curious as to what had hushed the humans.

It was a girl, but not just any girl; a _vampire_. But that's not what shocked me the most. I suddenly had the urge to run over to her, take her to my house and do unspeakable things to her in my bedroom. Possessiveness and lust coursed through my being and I was no longer the Edward that came to school this morning. This girl, in a matter of seconds, had turned my world upside-down. I could only register one word in my mind.

_Mine._

I knew then that I had found my mate. She was the most beautiful vampire I had ever seen in my entire existence. As she walked, her luscious brown hair fell over her shoulders, making a curtain, preventing me from seeing her. My body ached to run over to her and pull away her hair, showing me her gorgeous face. Her hips swayed with a natural rhythm and I could feel my lust for her increase. God, she looked so sexy. I approved that she was wearing her hoodie here so that the idiotic males of the school couldn't gaze upon her beauty. Only I was allowed to adore the curves of her body because she was mine. All mine.

She paid for her food and I expected her to come straight over to me, but she didn't. Instead she went to sit with a bunch of humans. I started to seethe with anger. How dare she! It seems that I would have to teach her about loyalty. I scoured her mind but I found that I couldn't read it. It was like some sort of shield was preventing me from entering it. I tried harder t hear her and only then was I aware of the thoughts of my siblings.

_Dude, what the hell is wrong with you? Your emotions are all over the place!_ Jasper annoyingly thought, trying to control my emotions.

_Finally! Edward as found his mate! Esme will be so happy and I'll have a new shopping buddy-YAY!_ Alice's thoughts sounded through my head.

_Does Edward like that girl? How could he? She's not even that pretty…_ Rosalie mused and I snarled at her so viciously that she was cowering back in her seat. Emmett hissed at me, and stood protectively in front of Rosalie.

"Don't you dare hiss at my Rosie." He threatened, staring me down. I could hear Jasper panicking, trying to diffuse the situation. I simply snorted and glanced at him for a second before returning back to my beautiful goddess. She had pushed her food away and was now looking around the cafeteria. Suddenly, she met my gaze and what I saw took my breath away.

Her lips were the colour of strawberries; so ripe and inviting that I licked my lips in anticipation. Her fresh, pale skin seemed to glow, making her look like an angel. Her hair hung down in loose curls to the middle of her back. My eyes traced her cute button nose and warm cheeks. I finally settled n her eyes. Joy coursed through me as I realised that her eyes were a warm topaz, filled with radiance and beauty. I wanted to take here right then and there and I could not find it in me to look away, but I never wanted to. Happiness swelled within my chest as I realised that she was appraising me. It was now obvious that she knew that I was her mate. Now all she had to do was come to me and I waited impatiently for her.

Suddenly, her lips started to tremble as she looked down with contorted features. I gasped; an angel like her should never look like that. She looked lost and I could see pain sealed within her eyes. I mentally swore an oath that I would do everything in my power to make sure that she would never look like that again. Ever.

She looked back up at me and if she were human, she looked like she would be crying. I leaned in her direction, wanting to reach out and cradle her in my arms. I wanted to take away all of her pain and sorrow. I would annihilate whatever had caused her to look like this. I saw that she was leaning towards me as well and was about to get up when Jessica Stanley asked her a question. My love broke our gaze to whirl around to answer Jessica. Damn that human!

I heard my angel ask about me and my family and I became insanely jealous. I didn't want her to know about me through a bunch of rumours! _I _wanted to be the one to tell her about myself.

"Oh! They're the Cullens." The infantile human told my beautiful girl, "They're Doctor and Mrs. Cullens foster kids and moved down here from Alaska, like, two years ago. The big one is Emmett and he's with Rosalie, the blonde one who looks like she should be a supermodel. Then the little pixie girl is Alice, she's really weird. She's with Jasper, the blonde guy who looks like he's in pain." I hissed quietly as the pitiful girl bad-mouthed my siblings and I itched to wipe that smile off her face.

"What about him?" My love asked, somewhat impatiently. It delighted me that she wanted to know about me as much as I wanted to know about her. I didn't even know her name.

_Ugh, why did she ask about Edward Cullen? Like she'd have a chance with him! _ Jessica's inner voice said; she was starting to make me incredibly angry. "Oh, that's Edward. He's gorgeous isn't he?" Immense pleasure swam through me as my girl's fingers twitched as if to hit her, "But don't waste your time. He doesn't date." Jessica turned away, remembering the amount of times that I had rejected her. I heard my brown haired beauty chuckle under her breath; the sound was enchanting.

Without warning, one of the hopeless human boys, whom I recognised as Mike Newton, put his vile arm around _my _mate.

"You don't want to hang around with them Bella." _Bella…_I repeated in my head reverently; it was an absolutely beautiful name, fitting for my girl, "You've got us." _You've got me._ He added silently.

I was filled with the blackest rage as this insignificant boy thought that he owned _my _Bella. I leapt off my chair and it collapsed with a bang. I allowed a low, menacing growl to escape through my clenched teeth. All eyes in the canteen were now trained on me as I slowly stalked up to the boy, murderous thoughts running through my head. I was prepared to kill him right there, but when I glanced at my Bella, I calmed slightly. I realised that I couldn't kill him for it would upset my girl. I decided that I wouldn't kill him. Yet. But I would have to let it be known that Bella was _mine_.

I ignored the mental screams of my brothers and sisters as I stood by their table. I was so close to my love that I wanted to reach out and touch her. I leaned down so I was over the boy, like a predator and its prey. I was filled with deep satisfaction as I saw Mike quivering with fear.

"Take your filthy hands off her." I threatened, pronouncing each word with anger and hatred. Newton immediately removed his arm from my Bella. Shame, I would have taken great pleasure in doing that myself, and taking off other parts of his body.

"Good." I told him, but I wasn't done yet, "Now, if you so much as think about her again, I will make sure that you suffer a slow and painful death." I spat. "Am I clear?" With my mind reading skills, I would know whether he was thinking about my mate or not, which he had better not; his life would depend on it. He swiftly nodded his head and I continued to glare at him. I wrapped my fingers around my Bella's hand and pulled her up next to me, my six foot two towering slightly over her small five foot four frame. "And that goes for all of you." I glared at the other undeserving boys around the table. I let go of my loves hand and instantly missed the contact so I wrapped my arm around her waist; she fit perfectly and only further proved that she was made for me and only me. "She is _mine._" I told them and I walked away with my Bella by my side, where she would stay for all eternity. I subtly sniffed my girl and my senses swirled with the smell of freesias with a hint of strawberry. It was absolutely mouth watering and it just made my want for her grow even more. Shocks of electricity ran through me and for the first time in a while, I felt truly alive as I pulled my girl towards the door that led outside, intending to stake my claim and officially make her mine.


	7. Be Mine

Chapter 7: Be Mine

Edward dragged me out into the drizzling rain outside, not allowing me to spare a glance at Mike, who I'm sure still hasn't recovered from Edward's display. The air hit my face and Edward kept a tight hold on me, pulling me along to God knows where. He started leading me across the school field, heading towards the back of Building 6. As we squelched through the mud, I was sure that my heart would have been pounding in my chest if I were still human.

When we rounded the corner, he pushed me up against the wall and crashed his lips onto mine. I was a little bit shocked at first, so I froze for a split second, but soon my lips responded to his. We moved in perfect synchronization with each other and my fingers got their wish as they ran through his bronze hair. He wrapped his strong arms around me and crushed me to him even further. His cool tongue slid across my bottom lip, begging for entrance and I gladly accepted, opening my mouth wide enough for his tongue to battle mine. He growled appreciatively and unwound one of his arms so he could wrap it around my right thigh and hitch it up against his hip. I couldn't hold back the moan that escaped my mouth as my fingers twisted in his hair, immense desire running through me. It was lucky that we didn't need to breathe.

After about ten minutes of this, he pulled away from me, only to move his mouth to my jaw, trailing butterfly kisses down my neck and across to the base of my throat. I sighed in pleasure as I rested my cheek on top of his head. I decided to tease him a little bit and pushed my hips into his, causing him to moan and growl at the same time.

"Oh God, don't stop." He ordered as I pushed my hips into him again. I started to lose control of my body slightly as I brought my other leg up and hooked them around his hips. He roughly grabbed my ass and captured my lips again, crushing me between the wall and him.

The bell for fifth period went and we both groaned in frustration. Edward seemed reluctant to let me go as he gave me one last long lingering kiss on my lips and pulled away from me, but he still didn't set me down. He looked deep into my eyes for an immeasurable amount of time before his voice pulled me from his gorgeous gaze.

"Come away with me." He whispered huskily in my ear, kissing just under it.

"W-what?" I asked, still trying to gain control of myself and with us in this position, it wasn't helping me achieve that goal.

"Come away with me." He repeated, a bit more urgently this time.

"Where?" I questioned. He smirked as he rubbed his face around mine, marking me with his scent. To my surprise, he started purring at the contact and soon found myself purring along with him.

"My silly Bella." He chuckled. I was instantly thrilled as he used the word _my_. "Come back to my home with me."

"Why?" I was still slightly confused. His eyes turned a shade darker, almost as if he was hungry, but not for blood. He leaned down in my ear and I could feel his cool breath as he breathed in my scent.

"Hmm, delicious." He murmured. He lowered me down onto the ground and wrapped me up in a tight embrace and buried his face in the crook of my neck. "I want you, my Bella. I want to be inside of you. I want to claim you as mine and never let you leave my side. I want to take you home so I can make love to you. Right now." He said as he inhaled me again. I was momentarily stunned at how forward he was. As much as I wanted to make love with him, I didn't really want to set a bad example on my first day.

"Can I go to your house after school?" I asked. He whipped his head up and narrowed his eyes at me.

"Why not now?" he asked, tightening his grip on me, "I don't think I can wait until after school, and I certainly will not have any more pathetic boys after you. You. Are. _Mine._ The sooner I claim you, the better." He stated. To prove his point further, he cupped my sex.

"Ahh!" I moaned. It was taking all my strength to stop myself from jumping him right now. I started shaking from all the concentration.

"See? Even your body knows it's mine. Please, love. Don't hold back." He pleaded. Despite all the feelings running through me, I managed to shake my head.

"Come on, we're going to be late." I told him. I gently pushed him away and started to walk to Biology, when a pair of stone arms wrapped around my waist from behind and pulled me to him, my back pressed firmly against his chest.

"Very well, my love. We shall wait until after school. But I _will _get what I want, and you are not allowed to talk to any males for the rest of the day. Agreed?" he asked, although the tone in his voice dared me to argue. I spun around to face him and I took his face in between my hands.

"Agreed." I promised and gave him a passionate kiss which he eagerly returned. He whimpered as I pulled away and I laughed softly. Edward held my hand and entwined our fingers as we headed to our lesson. He escorted me through the now empty corridors; we were ten minutes late. I let go of his hand as he held the door open for me. Mr. Banner turned to see who had disrupted his lesson.

"Isabella Swan?" he asked. I gingerly nodded my head, "Why are you late to my lesson?"

"Sir, Isabella got lost on her way here. I helped her find her lesson." Edward lied smoothly, but he was seething in anger. I peeked at Mr. Banner and saw that he was looking me up and down. He caught me staring and looked down, blushing slightly.

"Um, yes. Er…very well. You can sit next to Mr. Cullen." I quickly handed him my slip and he signed it. Edward placed his hand on my lower back and led me to the back of the room where an empty desk was sat. All the while, he was glaring nastily at the male population in the classroom. I took my seat as Edward took his. I could see that he was really tense and his jaw was clenched; his eyes were almost pitch black?

"What's wrong?" I whispered at vampire speed. Edward took in a sharp breath.

"I will kill these pitiful boys for even daring to look at you, including this vile teacher." He hissed lowly. I could tell that he literally meant it so I placed my hand over his and squeezed it. He flipped his hand over and held on tightly to mine.

"You know no one here compares to you, honey." I told him, trying to calm him down. He turned to me with a smug smile on his face.

"I know." He answered and he swiftly kissed my cheek. I smiled and started to pay attention to the lesson. It was rather boring and all the while we were taking notes, Edward did not let go of my hand. With Edward here, I felt safe and loved, two things that I hadn't felt in a very long time.

Eventually, the bell rang, signalling the end of the lesson. I started to feel very excited for after school with Edward and I couldn't help but walk with a bounce in my step as I headed for Gym with my Edward by my side. I loved to think of him as that; _my _Edward.

I stopped just outside the changing rooms and turned to face Edward. His eyes were smouldering as they held mine hostage. How this creature was my mate I do not know. But I thanked whatever Gods there were that he was.

"I guess I'll see you by your car?" I inquired. Edward shook his head.

"No, I'll wait for you right here." He replied and gave me a chaste kiss on the lips. I smiled when I pulled away. I was about to walk through the doors when Edward caught my arm, "And Bella?"

"Yes?"

"Don't forget about tonight." He winked.

"How could I forget?" I answered softly. He gazed at me lovingly as I twirled around and got ready for Gym in a daze, impatient for the end of the day to come where Edward would save me from my horrid existence.


	8. I Am Yours

Chapter 8: I Am Yours

We had started volleyball in Gym and, not to sound big headed, but I was very good at it. I dipped and dived for the ball almost every time it came over my teams net. Mike Newton, true to his word, didn't look at me all lesson, but it didn't stop the other boys from oogling. Too be honest, I wasn't paying that much attention to the game, as my mind was constantly on Edward. We were going back to his place tonight…

Only then did reality sink in. Edward was practically a stranger to me and yet here I was, about to go to his house. I started to tremble slightly; what if he didn't like what he saw? Would he cast me away? Would he get his family to kill me?

I gulped as I got changed back into my clothes. All the girls were eyeing me with envy, but I didn't care; my thoughts were solely focussed on Edward. The bell for the end of the day went and I collected by bag and headed out to face Edward. The second I got out the door, all of my worries faded as I saw my perfectly sculpted Greek God leaning against the wall, waiting for me. As soon as his eyes met mine, a wide smile spread across his face. He came over to me, completely ignoring the human teenage girls who were gawking at his glory. I had the strongest urge to make sure that they backed off away from my Edward, but somehow I managed to restrain myself.

"Hey-" I greeted him, but I was cut short when he pressed his lips to mine. This kiss was slow but passionate, almost as if it were building up to something. And then I remembered tonight. My lips responded eagerly to his and my body started to yearn for him. With a low moan Edward pulled away, only to rest his forehead against mine and interlock our fingers.

"You have no idea how agonisingly hard it was to be away from you." He whispered huskily. My knees started to feel weak and I melted.

"Well, we're together now." I soothed him. He smiled a gorgeous crooked smile and pecked me on the lips.

"Are you ready?" he asked intensely. I heard the double meaning in his voice and part of my fear came back. I didn't realise I was nodding my head until it was too late. A brilliant smile lit up his face, flashing his perfect white teeth. He wound his arm around my waist and kissed my hair. He then led me out into the parking lot, where I spotted his siblings by the Silver Volvo I spotted this morning. I realised that there was not enough room for all six of us, so I slid past Edward and started heading in the opposite direction to walk. Suddenly, a hand grabbed my jacket and pulled me back as his arms fastened around my waist from behind, trapping my arms by my sides and keeping me hostage in front of him.

"Where do you think you're going?" Edward asked curiously, nuzzling my neck. I had to swallow and ignore the way that his touch left a trail of burning heat.

"Umm, I was going to walk?" I said, although it sounded a lot more like a question. Edward abruptly spun me around, anger flashing in his eyes. His hands moved from my waist to grip my shoulders.

"Why?" he asked, his eyes narrowing. I trembled slightly, I didn't like it when he was angry.

"B-because there's no room in the car for us _and _your siblings." I told him. He sighed and laughed slightly.

"Silly Bella." He chuckled, rubbing his nose against mine. His hands slid off my shoulders and down my arms where he folded my hands into his. His raised my hands and kissed each of my knuckles slowly. He started walking backwards towards his car and gently tugged me along, his eyes never leaving mine. He took each step slowly, savouring each moment. Before I knew it, we were by his car, his family already occupying four of the five seats.

"See?" I sighed, pointing to the driver's seat, "Only one seat left." Edward merely smiled as he picked me up bridal style. "Hey!" I complained. He simply chuckled as he sat in the driver's seat, placing me on his lap. "Oh." Was all I said as the rest of the family burst out laughing. Filled with embarrassment, I buried my face in Edward's chest. Two minutes into the journey, Edward sighed in frustration.

"No Alice." He practically growled. The little pixie sitting in the passenger seat huffed and folded her arms across her chest. Her cute face twisted into a scowl as she faced Edward.

"No fair Edward!" she whined, "You're not the only one she's important too!"

"Maybe I don't want to share." Edward replied, burying his face in my hair whilst driving. I thought it was a bit dangerous to take his eyes off the road, but I trusted Edward completely. After another five minutes, we pulled off the main road and turned onto a narrow driveway, surrounded by trees. After winding down the path, we came to an enormous house. It looked to be about late Victorian and was very grand. It could be passed as a mansion.

"Wow." I breathed, gazing at the house trough the windshield. Edward wrapped his arms around me, still sitting on his lap.

"Magnificent isn't it?" he whispered, kissing the sensitive bit under my ear and I shuddered in pleasure. I twisted my head around and placed my lips on his. I bit gently on his bottom lip and he moaned. It thrilled me to know tat I had that effect on him. I decided to take a step further as I straddled Edward. His hands gripped my hips as he hungrily pushed his tongue into my mouth, tasting me. I moaned deeply as our tongues danced. I pushed myself deeper onto him and he growled low within his chest.

"God, Bella. I want you so bad." Edward whispered huskily as he raised his hips to meet mine. It was getting very heated in the car so I pulled away to catch some unneeded breath. Edward had other ideas and continued to kiss my jaw and neck. I peeked one eye open and realised that we were still outside of his house. I didn't want our first time to be in his car if I was honest.

"Can we continue this in your room?..." I trailed suggestively. He looked in my eyes, excitement and lust dancing in them.

"I think-" he kissed my nose, "that going into my room is a very good idea." He concluded, kissing me one more time. I scrambled off him, opened the door and tumbled out of the car, landing on my back. Edward leaned his head out of the car and had a calculating expression on his face.

"You know, I think I like you in that position." He mused, his eyes raking down my body. I looked down, embarrassed, and hoisted myself up off the ground. I brushed the dirt off my clothes and when I looked back at Edward, he had an amused glint in his eyes, his lips pressed tightly together, holding back his laughter.

"If you need to laugh just go ahead and do it." I sighed. He clutched his stomach as he roared with laughter. I didn't really find me falling over funny so I stuck my chin up and marched straight for the house. Edward's laughter cut off and I only made it three paces when he grabbed my wrist.

"I'm sorry, my love." He said sincerely, "It was just- your face." He snickered. I rolled my eyes.

"Hardy har-har." I replied and tried to move for the house again, but his grip was strong on me. He slowly turned me around and gently lifted my chin up with his finger. I met his eyes and saw that they burned with regret.

"Honestly Bella. I am sorry. Please don't be angry with me." He begged, placing is forehead on mine, "I can't stand it if you're mad at me." He whispered. He looked really vulnerable; maybe he wasn't the only one with power in the relationship. I took his face in my hands and kissed him on the lips.

"It's ok." I mumbled. I pulled back to look at him, "Can we go in now?" He smiled and nodded his head. He took hold of my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. He led me up the stairs and through the front door. I was greeted by the sight of six vampires, waiting in a line. In the middle and slightly more forward was a blonde man who didn't look a day over twenty five. He had light blonde hair and golden eyes. He smiled at me and Edward. Next to him was a woman who looked the same height as me. She had caramel coloured hair that reached past her shoulders in natural waves. The blonde man had his arm around her waist; I could immediately tell that they were mates.

"Carlisle, Esme." Edward addressed, "This is my Bella." I ducked my head from their looks but glanced under my lashes at them; they seemed genuinely happy to see me.

"Welcome Bella." Te blonde one, Carlisle, greeted. I nodded my head in his direction.

"It's nice to meet you." I greeted shyly. The oldest woman, who I presumed was Esme, glided over to me and gave me a motherly hug. I hugged her back, but it was a bit awkward when Edward's grip on my hand tightened. She then surprised me by kissing my cheek and I could see out of my peripheral vision that Edward was glaring at his mother slightly. She pulled away to get a good look at me.

"My goodness!" she cried, "You're so beautiful!"

"Thank you." I whispered. Suddenly, the big burly vampire with short, curly brown hair from school came charging at me.

"BELLA!" he yelled. I cowered back as he kept running. He had his arms wide open and was about to pull me into, no doubt, a bone-crushing hug, but before he could reach me, he was tackled to the ground by Edward.

"What the hell dude?" the big one demanded, "I was only going to hug my new little sister." My dead heart leapt for joy at those words.

"Don't you dare Emmett." Edward threatened, his voice cold and harsh.

"But-" Emmett was about to protest.

"Don't" Edward growled. Emmett huffed and kept still. Once Edward was sure Emmett wasn't going to move towards me, he leapt up off Emmett and ran back over to me, wrapping one arm around my waist whilst stroking my hair with is other. Emmett got up and grumbled as he made his way to the blonde female who looked like a supermodel. She rolled her eyes at her husband and smiled at me.

"Hello Bella, I'm Rosalie." She introduced. I smiled at her and nodded my head. The pixie looking one was practically jumping up and down next to another blonde haired man. Her spiky black hair stuck up in all directions as her eyes sparkled when she looked at me.

"Hey Bella! I'm Alice!" she piped excitedly, "We're going to be great friends!" I laughed slightly at her excitement and turned my attention to the last blonde male.

"I'm Jasper." He smiled and I instantly felt calm. I nodded my greetings to him and looked again at all the family.

"I'm sorry, but I can't help but notice your eyes are golden. How did you control your thirst?" he asked. It seems to me that he likes to improve his knowledge. I shrugged my shoulders.

"I just didn't want to hurt humans." I replied.

"Fascinating." He murmured. I could see his eyes dancing and I'm sure that he had a million questions for me, but thankfully, Edward saved me.

"Questions later Carlisle." Edward said, glaring slightly at him as his grip on me tightened. Carlisle looked apologetically at me.

"I'm sorry. Of course this must be all new for you. We shall leave you and Edward to have some time together." And within the blink of an eye, the family had gone.

"Where did they go?" I questioned, my eyes darting around the room. I hope I hadn't offended them.

"Would you like me to show you?" Edward whispered huskily in my ear. He didn't give me time to answer as he picked me up and whisked me off upstairs. We passed many doors on each corridor. We finally reached the top floor and Edward stopped in front of one last door.

"My room." He whispered. He gently twisted the handle to reveal the most gorgeous room I had ever seen. The floor was covered in thick golden carpet with white walls. On far side of the room were shelves upon selves of CDs and books. Beneath those was a very expensive looking music system; I was afraid to touch it in case I broke it. Thick gold curtains draped by the large glass window, which took up the whole south wall, allowing me to see the Sul-Duc River and the mountains.

"It's…" I trailed off. I just couldn't think of the right word for this view.

"Beautiful." Edward whispered. I turned my neck and saw that he was staring at me intensely. Without any warning, his lips captured mine in a loving yet passionate kiss. I felt every inch of my body come alive with fire, and I came to the conclusion that I wanted him. Right now. Edward pulled away only to lovingly kiss every part of my face; my forehead, my cheeks, my nose, my eyelids and my lips. I tilted my head back so he could get easy access to my neck, which I think he enjoyed. I craned my neck and saw the comfortable looking king-sized bed; it looked extremely inviting.

"The bed?" I asked Edward breathlessly. He didn't stop kissing me but carried me to the bed. He pulled away from me to place me on the bed and then climbed on top of me so that he could attack me with his lips once again. He shifted himself on his hands so that he was hovering over me. I could feel his perfect abs through mine and his clothing and I wanted nothing more than to rake my fingers down them. He moved his face to the right of my neck and started sucking the skin there. I tried to ignore the wetness tat was now pooling in between my underwear. He moaned with pleasure.

"You taste so _good_." Edward moaned, now sucking the left side of my neck. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feel of his teeth as they grazed across my throat.

"Look at me." Edward whispered but ordered at the same time. I snapped my eyes open and was lost in is. We gazed at each other for a couple of minutes before Edward groaned and kissed me again, shoving his tongue into my mouth. I twisted my fingers in his hair and pulled him closer to me. One of his hands cupped the back of my neck while the other tangled itself within my hair. Our tongues battled for dominance when Edward unexpectedly started to lift off my hoodie. I raised my arms above my head and allowed him to strip the hoodie off me. He threw it to the other side of the room. He glanced at my Mickey Mouse shirt and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm a fan of Disney." I shrugged. He chuckled and dipped his head to kiss the base of my throat. He hooked his hands under my shirt and I raised my hands again, letting him proceed to take off my top. Now I was only in my bra and jeans. He discarded my top and his eye immediately went to my chest. He kept staring for a long time and I covered my face with my hands. I knew this would happen; he didn't like me anymore. He placed his hands over mine and pulled them away from my face.

"Don't hide yourself." Edward whispered, "You're beautiful." He kissed my eyelid and then crawled down my body, kissing down my neck, chest, in between my breasts, down my stomach and pressed his lips to where my jeans were. My head rested on the pillow and I left my arms above my head as he slid his hands down my thighs and calves and untied my shoes, taking them off. He rubbed my thighs soothingly as he trailed back up to the top of my jeans. He grabbed the button between his fingers and undid it. He unzipped me and slowly pulled off my jeans, his eyes drinking in my legs in doing so. He was soon on top of me again and started kissing me more passionately.

"God, Bella. You're fucking gorgeous." Edward moaned huskily. Hearing him curse only increased my arousal. I wanted him inside of me. But I knew I had to be patient. He was still fully clothed and that didn't go down too well with me. I pouted.

"What's wrong, love?" Edward asked, concern lacing his words. I tugged at the hem of his shirt.

"You're still dressed." I accused teasingly. He smiled wickedly at me and started to pull off his shirt. I put my hands over his.

"Wait." I told him and he paused, "Let me." I gently pushed him off me and kneeled opposite him on the bed. I held the fabric between my fingers and gently pulled the top over his head to reveal his perfect body. He was toned but not too muscled. I licked my lips, wanting to see more of him. I quickly flipped us over so that I was on top of him.

"Now, love." Edward said sternly, "I'm supposed to be leading."

"I know." I smiled, "But, can I just…" I didn't wait for him to answer as I undid the button on is belt. I dragged his jeans off his legs and noticed that he had already removed his shoes. I kneeled at the bottom of the bed and admired Edward. He really was the most perfect man I had ever seen. Suddenly, Edward sat up and roughly pulled me back onto the bed, resting on top of me. My fingers trailed down his toned stomach and his eyes rolled into the back of his head as I smirked.

"Fuck, Bella. I want you so bad." Edward groaned. He pushed his hips into mine and I could feel his erection pressed against my thigh. I couldn't stop the moan that escaped my lips. He crashed his lips to mine, urgency seeping through. He grabbed my bra and tore it off. He growled as he did the same with my underwear. He kneeled to look at me fully and his eyes clouded over with lust as his eyes searched my naked body. Now was my chance. I quickly pulled his boxers down and pulled him on top of me.

"Edward." I panted, "I-I need you inside of me." I pleaded. He was literally killing me. He positioned himself so that his erection was at my entrance.

"B-Bella." Edward got my attention quickly, "This may hurt just a bit." I nodded my head and buried my face in his shoulder. He thrust into me and I felt a stinging pain. I clutched to him tighter while he rubbed soothing circles on my back. I told him that I was alright when the pain went and he started to rock back and forth in me. He pulled out and thrust back into me a couple of times before getting a rhythm going.

"Oh God!" Edward moaned as he pumped harder into me. Immense pleasure took over my being and electric currents ran through me. It wasn't enough though.

"Edward." I moaned, "Faster." He happily obliged, picking up his pace. I could feel him inside of me and I moaned louder than I had ever done before.

"Does this make you feel good?" Edward whispered huskily. I nodded my head, unable to form a coherent sentence. I started raising my hips to meet his and he grabbed them and started slamming into me.

"Ahhhh!" I groaned. He felt amazing. I knew I was going to come soon.

"Bella?" Edward panted, "Bella listen to me. You do this with no one else. Ever. For all eternity."

"For all eternity." I repeated. I was close now, so close.

"Remember, you are mine. No one is allowed to come near you. Do you understand?" I nodded my head again and Edward angled his hips differently, allowing himself to bury himself deeper inside of me.

"Do you understand?" He repeated more harshly. I was about to reach my climax.

"Yes. Oh God, yes Edward." I whispered. I arched my back and moaned loudly again. I couldn't hold back anymore. "Edward, I-I'm-"

"That's right." Edward tempted, "Don't hold back. Come for me, my love. You feel so good, my Bella. Come for me." He didn't even have to ask as I came. I bucked my hips into him and I was on cloud nine. I shook slightly from my orgasm and when I calmed back down, it was his turn. He roughly slid his tongue in between my lips as he thrust harder into me. With one more hard thrust, he came.

"Yes!" He hissed as he spilled his seed into me. He hovered above me for a moment, shaking from his orgasm and he collapsed beside me on the bed. I took in deep breaths and saw that Edward was doing the same. He looked at me and smiled lovingly, reaching for me and then wrapping me up in his tight embrace. It felt so right to be here, in Edward's arms. He softly pressed his lips to mine and then rubbed his face over mine, marking me with his scent whilst we both purred at the affection. He placed one of his hands over my stomach, rubbing gentle circles on it. I sighed as he nuzzled his face to the crook of my neck and kissed my collar bone.

"Now, you are mine." Edward stated, bringing his face to rub against mine again, "Say it Bella. Say that you're mine and only mine."

"Yes Edward." I whispered passionately, "I am yours. And only yours."


	9. Meeting The Family

Chapter 9: Meeting The Family

Edward and I were lying lazily in his bed. We had made love another three times, and each time it just got better and better. Edward's cool fingers stroked soothing patterns on my bare stomach; I closed my eyes in pure bliss and a small smile graced my features.

"What are you thinking?" Edward murmured to me. His question confused me slightly; why would he want to know what I was thinking?

"What do you mean?" I asked.

He sighed and buried his face in the crook of my neck, "Bella, I can read minds." I froze. Panic washed over me at the possibility that he had heard everything that I had thought about him; particularly as we were having sex.

"Oh God." I groaned and I turned my face in the opposite direction of Edward, shame taking hold of me. How could I have been so stupid! I knew that this would happen; he was just using me to see what I thought of him and now he would cast me away and I would be alone once again. I started to sob quietly at the thought. I felt fingers wrap around my chin and tug me in the direction of Edward. My gaze met his worried face

"What is it, love?" he demanded, searching my face, trying to find the answer.

"You're going to leave me." I whispered, heart broken. Edward suddenly turned incredibly angry.

"What do you mean Bella? I will _never _leave you, just as you will never leave me." He abruptly stopped, eyes narrowing into slits, "_You're _not going to leave _me_, are you my love?" he asked in a threatening tone. His eyes were piercing right through me, full of fury and betrayal. That made me mad.

"What do _you _mean Edward?" I cried, "Of course I would never leave you! Do you really think that low of me?" he calmed down immensely as I said this, an apologetic look in his eyes.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, "It's just that you're too important to me now. I don't want to lose you. Ever." I understood him at once because I felt the same. I snuggled closer to him and he wrapped his arms around me and kissed my hair.

"Besides," he continued in a light hearted tone, "I can't read your mind." I pulled away from him, cocking my head to the side.

"Why?"

"I don't know." He sighed, "But it's incredibly frustrating." He pulled me tighter to his body and I felt safe. I shrugged my shoulders.

"Now you know how the rest of feel." I replied, laughing slightly. He chuckled next to me, but all of a sudden I felt his weight on top of me. He started slowly kiss down my neck, leaving a trail of hot kisses.

"Oh God. I can't resist you." Edward groaned.

"Then don't." I teased. He moaned as he kissed back up my neck and to the corner of my mouth.

"That sounds like a very good idea." He said huskily. I started to get excited as I knew where this was heading. His lips met mine in a slow but passionate kiss. I could feel his love for me pouring into this kiss and I welcomed it with open arms. His tongue slid in between my waiting lips and our tongues danced in synchronization. Edward skilfully positioned himself at my entrance. The kiss continued when suddenly I felt him nudge slightly into me. We both moaned but refused to break our kiss. He was about to enter me fully when someone knocked on his bedroom door.

"Edward! I know you're in there! The rest of us want a chance to talk to Bella!" Edward's sister, Alice, shouted through the wood. Edward groaned and broke our kiss to turn his head slightly towards the door.

"Go away Alice." He murmured and turned his attention back to me.

"Edward, you let Bella out right now or so help me I will go in there and get her myself!" Alice's high pitched voice threatened. I started to panic slightly. I didn't want her first impression of me to be this; pinned under Edward.

"You wouldn't dare." Edward growled. I saw the door knob turning and I pushed Edward off me and bolted to the door, slamming it shut.

"See?" Alice smugly said, "Bella, I know this isn't your fault, but can you come out now? We want to meet our new family member. Pretty please?" I could just imagine her pouting and batting her eyelashes. I laughed at the image.

"Ok Alice. I'll be down in two minutes." I promised, receiving a growl from Edward. I turned around to face him; he didn't look happy.

"Please?" I mouthed to him. I pleaded with my eyes because I knew that he couldn't resist. His cold face eventually softened and he sighed.

"Fine." He agreed, although I could still hear disappointment in his voice. I sped across the room and kissed him fully on the lips. He eagerly responded and tried to pin me onto the bed again, but I managed to pull away just in time. I pressed my forehead against his.

"Thank you." I whispered. I gave him one last peck and got changed back into the clothes I came in. I quickly ran my fingers through my air in an attempt to brush it. Edward, who was watching my every movement, frowned slightly.

"What?" I asked curiously.

"I personally think you look better without anything on at all." He grinned cheekily. I smiled slightly, a little embarrassed.

"Only for you." I replied. Edward quickly got changed into clean clothes and held my hand, entwining our fingers.

"Shh, love." Edward cooed, "You're shaking." I didn't realise I was until he mentioned it, but I was quite nervous about meeting his family. What if they didn't like me? Edward seemed to sense my distress and brought my hand up to his face, kissing each finger. "Don't worry, they'll love you."

"Are you sure you can't read my mind." I said jokingly. He smiled at me.

"Positive." He whispered. By the hand, he led me across the room and outside the door. He gently pulled me down the corridor and tugged me down the stairs. When we reached the ground floor, he tucked me into his side.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Ready as I'll ever be." I replied. He smiled and gently kissed my hair. He pulled me into the direction of, what I assumed was, the living room. When he opened the door, I was greeted by the sight of his family occupying three of the four loveseats. Carlisle's arm was wrapped around Esme as she cuddled into his side. Emmett had his arms coiled protectively around Rosalie, who had her head laid on his chest. I spotted Alice sitting on Jasper's lap who was whispering things into her ear, making her giggle. I mentally shuddered at the things he might be saying to her. Everyone looked up at us and smiled. I shyly smiled back in return and Edward lead me to the empty loveseat. I went to sit by him, but he surprised me by pulling me onto his lap, curling his arms possessively around me. I snuggled into his chest and inhaled his scent. He smelt like lilac and sunshine; it was pure bliss. There was a moment's pause before Carlisle broke it.

"So Bella, tell us a little bit about yourself." He requested politely. I pulled my face out of Edward's chest and shrugged.

"What is there to tell?" I questioned.

"Well, when were you changed?" I sighed; I knew I'd have to face something like this sooner or later.

"I've been this way for about five years now." A collection of gasps sounded throughout the room and erupted into quiet talking.

"So young." Carlisle murmured.

"Oh you poor thing!" Esme cried.

"Cool!" Emmett bellowed.

"So much restraint." Jasper mused.

Rosalie just stared at me sympathetically whilst Edward rubbed up and down my back soothingly.

"Do you have any powers?" Jasper asked. I shook my head.

"Not that I'm aware of. But Edward said that he can't read my mind."

"Interesting." Carlisle seemed to be in deep thought.

"What about the rest of you?" I quizzed.

"Well, I can manipulate emotions as well as feel them, and Alice here can see the future." Jasper shrugged. I felt my jaw drop.

"Really?" I asked, disbelief lacing in my voice. Jasper smiled smugly and nodded his head. "Awesome." I whispered. The rest of the family chuckled.

"Bella, can we go shopping?" Alice trilled.

"Alice!" Edward snarled.

"What?" she said, defensively.

"There is no way that-" Edward started but I cut him off.

"Sorry Alice, I'm not a big shopping person." I admitted.

"But Bella!" she whined, "Just look at your clothes!"

"Alice!" Esme, Carlisle and Edward scolded. I laughed softly at Alice.

"No, it's ok. I guess I do need to go shopping." I said. Alice started bouncing on Jasper's lap.

"Yay!" she squealed.

"I'm going with you." Edward stated firmly, looking at me. Alice stopped her bouncing to scowl at Edward.

"But-" she was cut off by Edward glaring at her.

"Hmph." She pouted, sitting back on Jasper's lap, "Party pooper." She mumbled, causing the rest of us to laugh.

"Bella," Rosalie said quietly, "how were you changed?" Oh no. No, no, no, no, no. I didn't want to think of that; anything but that! My vision became slightly blurry and I started to hyperventilate. Edward shook me gently.

"Bella? What's wrong?" he asked in a panicked voice. I couldn't respond; the weight of the world seemed to be crashing on my shoulders, making me feel heavy so I hung my head and closed my eyes.

"Carlisle!" I heard Edward cry. Suddenly, the whole family was in an uproar, shouting orders at each other. Carlisle opened my eye but all I could see was a blurry outline of him.

"She seems to be going into shock." Carlisle stated. How did he know that? "She needs to rest." He informed us as he let me close my eye again. I felt a pair of strong arms carry me swiftly up the stairs. A few seconds later, I was placed on a comfortable bed. I felt someone lay down beside me and wrap their arms around me protectively. My trembling form relaxed slightly at their touch.

This often happen when I thought about…_that. _I would normally have breakdowns like this. And to make it go away, all I had to do was wait.


	10. Life Support

Chapter 10: Life Support

I don't know how long I lay there for. My only source of time was from the quiet, shallow breathing of my companion lying by my side. I felt incredibly guilty for making the family worry like this. But no matter how much I tried, I just couldn't bare to face my past. I was pathetic. I was weak.

This was wrong. I shouldn't have to drag people into my troubles. What happened to me wasn't their fault; they didn't deserve to be stuck with such a low creature as me. I had counted five thousand breaths from the person beside me. I stirred a little and my eyelids fluttered slightly. I took in a deep breath through my nose and welcomed the clean air as it breezed through my body. The breathing beside me cut off. I exhaled slowly, trying to pry my body into moving some more.

"Bella?" I heard an angel whisper. I would recognise that voice anywhere, for that was the voice of Edward. _My _Edward. I could feel a small smile playing on my lips.

"Bella?" he breathed again, much closer this time. A hand brushed against my arm, sending the pleasurable electric shocks through my skin and into my bones. The bed dipped to the left of me, indicating that Edward had come closer, his scent wafted into my nose; it felt so much better than the air.

"Bella, love? Can you hear me?" Edward asked. I couldn't speak properly yet so I just shuffled a little on the bed, telling him that I could hear him. I heard him sigh from relief and I was glad that he was ok.

"Can you open your eyes?" I wanted to show him that I could, but my lids felt heavy. I tried to lift my lids, but they wouldn't budge. I whimpered as all I could see was black and it made me feel uncomfortable. I had been in darkness for too long and I wanted to gaze at my love. I started sobbing slightly, missing his glorious face already.

"Shh." He cooed me softly, stroking my hair, "It's alright. You might be able to do it in a minute. Please, love, don't strain yourself." I took in a deep breath and stayed still for a couple of minutes, gaining my energy. I counted down from five and n one, I pushed open my eyelids with as much force as possible. To my great delight, I succeeded, but my sight was still a bit blurry.

"Ed-ward." I whispered, my voice hoarse. I tried to search for him but my vision still hadn't improved.

"I'm right here, love." He told me. I felt slight pressure on my hand and realised that Edward was holding it. I looked in the direction of the pressure and saw an outline of a body. I glanced up and saw an unusual bronze colour that only belonged to my Edward. I started rejoicing as I realised that Edward had stayed by my side the whole time that I had had my breakdown. My vision started to clear and I could see a pair of topaz eyes, filled with worry, love and a hint of hope. My eyes widened at what I must have put him through.

"Oh Edward!" I cried and flung myself at him. I landed on top of him on the bed and he caught me easily and held me close. I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him tightly to me. His arms constricted around my frame and pulled me up so he could place a gentle kiss on my lips. I responded to the kiss, but he ended it much too early for my liking. He noticed my annoyance, so started pecking every part of my face. I giggled slightly.

"Oh God, Bella! I'm so glad you're alright! You had me worried sick!" he cried. He didn't give me time to respond as he pressed his lips to mine in a passion filled kiss. I poured all of my love in to this kiss, almost as if we had been reunited. I pulled away to start my apology.

"I'm so sorry Edward!" I sobbed, "I-It's just that, e-every time I think of…_that_, I just b-break down and…and…" Edward silenced my lips with his and kissed me for longer this time.

"Don't apologise Bella. We didn't know it was a subject which you were sensitive to. I'll be sure to have a few words with Rosalie." His voice grew darker by the end of his sentence and his eyes darkened slightly with hatred. I shook my head and looked into his eyes.

"Please don't take it out on Rosalie." I pleaded, "It wasn't her fault. I didn't tell any of you. It could have been anyone that brought it up. I just thought that I could handle it but obviously I can't. I'm so pathetic!" I buried my face in Edward's chest and started dry sobbing.

"Look at me." Edward growled. I timidly lifted my lashes and peeked at Edward; he looked mad. "Listen to me Isabella Swan. You are _not _pathetic. You are the most amazing creature I have ever met and I love you." He said, stroking my cheek. I froze at the words he had just said. _He loves me?_ I repeated this phrase in my head and a wide smile spread across my face. That was the first time he said that he loved me and it sent warm shots through my body.

"I love you too." I whispered to him. His answering smile was brilliant as it showed off all of his perfect teeth. I saw so much happiness and love in his eyes that I couldn't help but stretch the smile across my face further. Edward pulled my face to his and gave me a breath taking kiss. When the kiss finished, I lay on his chest for a while, letting reality come back to me.

"Hey, where's the rest of your family? I think I need to apologise." I noticed that it was very quiet in the house.

"Firstly, you don't have to apologise. Secondly, they're _our _family. And finally, Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie have gone to school, Carlisle has gone to the hospital and Esme has gone with him to visit the children's ward. She likes to cook for them and look after them."

"That's extremely nice." I choked out. Suddenly, I had a flashback from my human life.

_Flashback_

_I held her hand as the heart monitor kept beeping, telling me that she was still alive. My head rested on her bed, eyes closed. I hadn't left her side since she had come here. My eyes were sore from all the crying that I had been doing. I squeezed my eyes tighter and prayed that she would be ok. _

_Someone must have heard my prayer for her little body stirred. My head snapped up as I stared at her. Her head was lolling slightly and she took in steady breaths. I saw her little eyes peek open and she winced at the light. Tears started to fill my eyes once again; this was all my fault._

"_Izzy?" she coughed. Hearing her innocent sweet voice made the tears start to trickle down my cheeks Her ocean blue eyes were red and swollen. Her once rosy cheeks and creamy skin were now marred with scars, burns and bruises. Tiny cuts sprayed across the left side of her face and her beautiful soft blonde hair was now matted with sweat and scraped back onto the pillow .I could only just see her tiny chest moving up and down as she struggled to breathe. I stayed where I was, not blinking, not moving. Soon she would remember what happened and then she would hate me forever. Being with me almost cost her her life._

"_Oh God!" I choked. I buried my face in my hands; too ashamed to look at what I had done. "I'm so sorry." _

"_S'not your fault." She whispered. I heard her start panting heavily and coughing horribly. The doctors ran in, shooing me from the room. I started to cry harder as I was placed in the waiting room. A nurse tried to comfort me but I forcefully shrugged her off. This was all my fault. She could die because of me._

_She was only four…_

_End Flashback_

"Bella? Bella?" Edward called. I shook my head and looked back at him. His face was filled with confusion and worry.

"Sorry." I mumbled, looking down.

"What happened? One minute you were fine, and the next you were staring off into space?"

"It doesn't matter." I whispered. I could see he was about to ask me about it again so I changed the subject, "Can I have a bath?" Edward looked surprised at first but nodded his head.

"Sure. It's through there." He pointed to a door that was in his room. Strange, I never noticed it before.

"Thank you." I told him sincerely and pecked his lips. I slowly walked into the bathroom, still recovering from my flashback. I could feel Edward's eyes boring into the back of my skull so I quickened my pace and entered the bathroom. I didn't care to notice anything in there other than the bath tub with shampoo, conditioner and soap neatly laid out on the side.

_Alice. _I thought. As I closed the door, I suddenly got the cold feeling that I was alone. My body started to tremble and venom pooled my eyes. Just thinking about being alone brought back so many memories from my human life. I quickly whirled around and opened the door again. Edward hadn't moved from his spot. But as soon as he saw my face, he was in front of me in the blink of an eye.

"Bella!" he asked alarmed. His fingers traced my face and his eyes roamed down my body. "What is it? Are you hurt?" he was starting to panic. I shook my head and simply hugged him. I needed to be comforted right now. He gently wrapped his arms around me, unsure of what I wanted from him.

"Can you bathe with me?" I asked. Normally, I would have been too embarrassed to ask, but now I needed him more than ever.

"Sure love. Whatever you want." He replied and kissed my hair. He picked me up gently and carried me into the middle of the bathroom, gently kicking the door shut with his foot. He carefully placed me down on the floor and started running the bath. He returned to me and I lifted my arms in the air, allowing him to pull off my hoodie and shirt in one go. He undid my jeans and slid them off my legs. I should have enjoyed this sensation, but I was too numb to think of anything but _her_; I winced as her face came flooding back into my mind. Edward noticed this and froze, thinking it was him.

"No, keep going." I told him. He nodded and carried on removing my jeans. Once they were off, he unclasped my bra and threw it by my clothes and did the same with my underwear. I was now completely naked and didn't miss how Edward's eyes raked down my body. I chuckled lifelessly.

"See something you like?" I asked emotionlessly. He smiled sadly and nodded. He proceeded to take off his own clothes so that we were both naked. He shut off the water so the tub was almost full. He turned to me and picked me up bridal style and gently lowered me into the bath. Once the hot water made contact with my skin, I sighed in content. When I was fully in, Edward climbed in behind me, making the water rise even further. I was in between his legs which were at my sides. I felt his arms wrap around my deadened form and pull me up onto his chest, cradling me like a small child. He occasionally kissed my hair and whispered words of comfort in my ear. I closed my eyes and let Edward and the water soothe me.

"Wash me?" I whispered. Edward nodded and grabbed the soap and a sponge. He applied the two together and gently washed me, rubbing soapy sponge down my back in small circles. He lifted each of my arms up and washed them, kissing parts of my skin as he did so. He carefully turned me around so that I was facing him and bathed the front of me too. Once I was all clean, I timidly washed my hair with the shampoo and conditioner whilst Edward washed himself. Once my hair was done I just sat in the warm water and watched as Edward washed his hair. I wish I could have washed him too.

As soon as he was done, he carried me out of the bath and grabbed two fluffy towels. He wrapped one around his waist and placed me down so that he could pat me dry. When I was fully dry, he handed me a white bath robe and I put it on, not feeling the texture, staring at the tiled wall. I felt a hand on my shoulder and saw that Edward was wearing a bath robe too. He picked me up bridal style and I wrapped my arms around his neck, burying my face into the crook of his neck. I started sobbing slightly as he sat on the bed, refusing to let go of me. He started rocking me back and forth gently when I uttered the name I hadn't spoken in five years.

"Emily."


	11. Shopping

Chapter 11: Shopping

Edward and I were in our own personal bubble. It wasn't a happy one as the image of Emily was burned in my brain. I had tried so desperately to forget about her and start off fresh, but she was too important to me to forget. And now she was gone…

I could have saved her. If I had only been a bit quicker, then she would still be alive. She could've gone on with her life without any interference from me. She would have been nine last week.

A new round of sobs broke through my chest and Edward held me tighter. I hated that I was causing him so much pain by watching me blubber; it wasn't fair. I didn't deserve him. I didn't deserve anything. Edward deserved a mate who could handle anything. He deserved a beautiful blonde creature that he could love and, in return, she could love him fully.

I could not give Edward one hundred percent of my love. Part of it always has and always will belong to Emily. My body shuddered; she gave me her love too. And I broke it. Ever since my change, I had beaten myself up about abusing her trust. I promised her that everything would be ok. I lied through my teeth to make her love me. But it was all for nothing.

I felt Edward shift underneath me. I snapped out of my trance to see what he was doing. He lifted me off his lap and placed me on the bed. He got up and walked across his room and looked out of is window. I watched carefully as he sighed and ran his fingers through his now dry hair. He turned to face me and studied me carefully and I made no sudden movements, afraid of what he might be thinking. He cautiously approached and knelt in front of me. He took my small hands in his and kissed them lovingly.

"Bella." He brokenly whispered. He looked up and his eyes met mine. I could see the pain in his gold irises, mixed in with concern. A fresh wave of guilt washed over me as I realised that everyone I got close to just ended up getting hurt. I didn't respond to his call, but kept staring back at him.

"Bella." He said, a little louder this time. "Please love." He begged, "I-I can't stand to see you like this. Please. Tell me what happened."

For the first time, I actually considered telling my story. Edward wanted to help me, but I couldn't guarantee that I would be able to talk about my past without breaking down. I closed my eyes and the image of Emily stared back at me. I memorised her wheat blonde curly hair, her bright smile which caused cute dimples to be imbedded on her rosy cheeks, her deep ocean eyes that seemed to swallow me up when she looked at me. It suddenly came to me that by not mentioning her; it was almost as if she never existed. This was wrong. An angel like Emily deserved to be done justice. I should be pouring out my heart to everyone, telling them how lovely she was. I breathed in a deep breath and reopened my eyes. The image of Emily did not disappear, but it was like she was right next to Edward. I gazed at him again and gritted my teeth in determination.

"It all started when my mom remarried." I began. I was about to continue when the door burst open. Still in my fragile state, I shrieked and hid behind Edward, who was now stood up facing the door, taking a defensive stance slightly in front of me. A petite figure with spiky hair emerged, her hands on her hips. Alice.

"Come on! You're not even dressed!" Alice cried. I looked at her, confused.

"What?" I asked, "Where are we going?"

"Shopping silly!" she told me as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Alice," Edward growled, "not now."

"Oh this has nothing to do with you Edward!" She snapped, "I want to take _Bella_ shopping. Now move out so she can get dressed." Edward did the opposite and placed himself directly in front of me, cutting off Alice's view of me.

"No." Edward stated in a final tone.

"Yes." Alice replied. I glanced down and saw Edward's hands curled into fists, trembling slightly. Jasper entered the room, probably sensing Edward's emotions, and put himself in front of Alice, defensively.

"Come on Edward." Jasper soothed, his southern accent playing in. "Bella is still new to all this. Give her a bit of freedom." Edward snarled at his comment.

"I will have to be in ashes before I allow her to leave my side." Edward hissed. He started crouching down, ready for a fight. Jasper mimicked his stance.

"She has the right to make her own choices." Jasper firmly told him. "Stop babying her and let her decide what she wants to do."

"Don't you _dare_ tell me how I should treat my mate! You let Alice have free reign over you! That's why she's so God damn stubborn! Bella. Is. Mine!" Edward exploded. We were suddenly joined by Emmett who stood in between Edward and Jasper. They were both sending murderous glares to each other.

"Come on guys. Stop it; you're scaring Bella." Emmett informed them. Edward whipped his head around to face me. His face crumbled in shame as he took in my rigid form. He stood up and pulled me into a tight embrace. He buried his face in my neck and sighed. I glanced over at Alice, who was peeking her head around Jasper's still form, and looked apologetically at her.

"Sorry Alice." I mumbled. Her face softened.

"It's ok Bella." She whispered. I had the strongest urge to hug her small frame, but I couldn't move out of Edward's grip. He pulled his face out of my neck and took my face between his hands, resting his forehead on mine.

"Do you want to go shopping?" he asked me gently. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jasper's smug smile and Alice started bouncing in place. I nodded my head, not breaking eye contact with him.

"Please." I whispered. He sighed and nodded his head. He placed his lips on mine lovingly and pulled away. He circled his arms around my waist as I buried my face in his chest.

"I'm sorry Jasper, Alice." Edward apologised, resting his chin on top of my head.

"Hey don't worry about it." Jasper said.

"Good!" Emmett clapped. "Now all that's sorted, I have to get back to my Rosie." I lifted my head out of Edward's chest.

"Eww." I mumbled. Edward, Alice and Jasper laughed. Emmett waggled his eyebrows and darted out of the room.

"Shopping time!" Alice squealed loudly. She dragged Jasper out of our room and shut the door. I untangled myself from Edward and put my worn clothes back on. I think I needed this shopping trip. Edward glided over to his wardrobe and put on a fresh pair of faded blue jeans with a belt and a green short-sleeved button down shirt. He then walked over to a set of drawers and pulled out a dark blue jumper and pulled it over his top half. He put on his grey trainers and came over to me, linking his fingers with mine. He gave me a peck on the lips and stroked my cheek with his free hand.

"Shall we?" he asked.

"We shall." I giggled. We trailed downstairs where Jasper and an impatient looking Alice were waiting. The pixie had her arms folded across her chest with her foot tapping on the floor.

"Took you long enough!" she scolded. I couldn't hold back the sniggers that escaped my lips and neither could Edward. Alice rolled her eyes and marched outside, dragging Jasper with her. Edward towed me outside by the hand and stopped at a yellow Porsche.

"Wow." I whispered. I peeked through the tinted windows and saw Alice in the driver's seat, next to Jasper who was in the passenger seat. I saw that Alice was glowing with excitement.

"Is she always like this when she goes shopping?" I asked Edward. He merely shrugged in reply.

"Alice will be Alice." He climbed in to the back and pulled me in after him. He placed me on his lap and buckled the seatbelt around us both. Alice rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"So in love." She muttered. Edward laughed and nuzzled his face into my hair, purring at the contact. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feel of Edward touching me as I heard the Porsche come alive. I couldn't tell how fast we were going but approximately one hour later, the car slowed down and came to a stop. I opened my eyes and found that we were in a parking lot.

"Alice, where are we?" I asked, still drinking in the sight before me.

"Seattle. We're going to the mall!" she squealed and clapped her hands. I heard Jasper chuckle as two car doors opened and slammed shut.

"Edward," I nudged him, "we have to go now." He groaned and hugged me tighter to him. He hadn't moved an inch since the beginning of the journey, except for the fact that he had closed his eyes.

"I'd rather stay in this position." he mumbled. I had to agree with him there, but it wasn't fair on Alice and Jasper who were already making their way into the mall. Alice had a bounce in her step which made me chuckle. I decided to be a little more persuasive and leaned down to whisper in Edward's ear.

"You'd better let us out now otherwise you're not getting anything for a whole month." He immediately shot up, undid the seatbelt at lightening speed and dragged us out of the car, running after Alice and Jasper. I laughed at his new found enthusiasm. Even if he didn't get out, I wouldn't have stuck to that promise; my will would have crumbled tonight.

When we caught up with Alice and Jasper, Edward was immediately on guard. He wrapped both of his arms around me and buried his face in the crook of my neck, still walking beside me. I didn't fail to notice how Jasper kept an arm around Alice too. When we got into the crowded part of the mall, Edward lifted his face to glare nastily at the males who were looking lustfully at me. He tightened his grip on me but I didn't complain. I decided to help him out a bit and wrapped both of my arms around Edward's waist. He smiled down at me and I couldn't help but smile back.

"Thank you." He whispered and kissed my nose. Alice led us into a clothes shop where she instantly started throwing clothes at me. I now held a total of twenty pieces of clothing and a victorious looking Alice.

"Try them on!" she squealed. I sighed as I entered the changing rooms. I entered the cubical and drew the curtain across. I started getting changed when I felt a pair of arms wrap around my waist. I squeaked and looked behind me and sighed when Edward was there.

"You frightened me." I accused in mock hurt. I saw a smile tugging at his lips. He leaned down and kissed my neck.

"I'm sorry." He whispered. "Let me make it up to you." He surprised me by nipping gently at my neck. Pleasure and desire ran through me. He lifted his face from my neck and crashed his lips to mine. His tongue darted in and out of my mouth and I moaned rather loudly; I had to remember that we were in a public place so I quietened down.

"Don't worry." Edward whispered huskily into my ear, "No one is here." He attacked my lips with his again and as he bit on my bottom lip, he started grinding against me. I moaned even louder and knotted my fingers in Edward's hair. I pushed back onto him and he growled lustfully. I realised that Edward came in half way through me getting changed. I glanced down at my body and found that I was only in my bra and pants. Edward shoved me up against the wall of the cubical so I was pinned. He swiftly bent down and hooked his arms around my thighs, pulling them up to his hips to allow him better access to me.

"Ugh, Bella." Edward panted when he released my lips. His eyes snaked down my bodice and his eyes clouded over in lust.

"Umm, Edward. D-do you t-think we should be d-doing this?" I panted. We were in a public place after all.

"Yes." He growled out as he placed lustful kisses on the side of my neck, "Right here. Right now." I felt his hands explore my body as he started sucking on my neck. His hands started massaging my breasts and I jumped, a little surprised.

"Don't deny me what I want, my love." Edward warned. I shook my head as I couldn't form a coherent sentence without moaning. Edward's lips were planted on mine once again but he soon started to slowly make his way down my chin, the length of my neck and stopped when he reached in between my breasts. He took the fabric between his teeth and ripped it off, leaving my top half exposed.

"Mine." He whispered as he started sucking on the flesh.

"Ahh." I moaned. I quickly took the opportunity to strip off his jumper and unbutton his shirt and he happily obliged. Once Edward was topless, I took a good few seconds to gaze at his perfectly sculpted chest and abdomen. As I was oogling, Edward saw this as the moment to rip off my pants and as soon as he did, he cupped my sex.

"Ugh. You're so wet for _me_." Edward whispered. He started sliding his finger across my entrance before he plunged it into me. I cried out in sheer pleasure. He started pumping his finger inside of me and I tried not to buck my hips. Soon after, he added another finger and curled them slightly inside of me. I felt the warm knot tighten in my stomach and I arched my back, ready for my release.

"No." Edward hissed, "Keep it in. I'm only getting you warmed up." I nodded my head and did my best to hold myself together. I couldn't help but remove his belt. I heard the fabric fall to the floor and saw Edward's erection straining against his boxers. I grabbed the top of them and shredded them off his form. Without warning, Edward pushed me back up against the wall, removed his fingers and slid his erection easily into me. I gasped as I felt him inside of me.

"Oh God! You're so _tight _and _wet_." Edward growled. "And it's all _mine_. Isn't it love?"

"Yes." I breathed, "All for you."

"Good." He huskily replied. He roughly grabbed my hips and started slamming into me, causing the knot in my stomach to tighten and heat up. I knew that I would release any second now and so did Edward as he angled his hips slightly upwards to explore more of me.

"Come with me my Bella." Edward ordered, "Come with me." I arched my back in response and screamed out as I released. I felt Edward come inside of me at the same time. When we were done, Edward simply held me lovingly, refusing to pull out of me. It was only then that we were reminded that Alice and Jasper were still waiting for us so Edward quickly changed back into his clothes as I tried on the rest of the items of clothing Alice had given me, with Edward kissing exposed parts of my skin as I did so.

Once I was done and dressed back in my original clothes, Edward planted a sweet kiss on my lips and I led him out of the changing rooms, handing the clothes to Alice. I sneaked a glance at Edward and I found that his eyes were dancing, a smug smile plastered on his lips. I must have satisfied him then. Alice seemed to notice his mood too as she raised an eyebrow at me.

"They're fine." I told her, handing her the clothes with a smile. She smiled back, flashing her teeth and ran to pay for the clothes.

"Oh aren't they just." Edward said cheekily and I lightly smacked his arm, earning a chuckle from him. When we were finished in that shop, we went to several others and by the time we had finished, we ended up with forty shopping bags in total.

"Let's go." Edward said eager to get home. I looked up at him and saw he was staring at me with lust filled eyes. I giggled and looked down.

"Hang on!" Alice stopped us, "We just need to go to one more shop." Alice danced her way through the crowd as me, Edward and Jasper reluctantly followed. The scent of the humans was over whelming and I leaned into Edward for support.

"Are you alright love?" Edward whispered. I shook my head in an attempt to clear thoughts of murdering the innocent humans.

"I need to go hunting after this." I breathed. Edward nodded his head in understanding and Jasper tried to calm me down. I nodded my appreciation to him and he smiled back. I saw Alice stop in front of a shop and I glanced at what it was called.

_Victoria Secret_

My eyes went wide and I looked at Alice. She smiled wickedly and I gulped in fear. I didn't know what the little pixie was up to but I didn't like the way she was looking at me. Not one bit.

"I think this is the best idea you've had all day Alice." Edward said huskily whilst staring at me. "Remind me to thank you later." Alice laughed a tinkling laugh.

"We'll wait out here for you." Jasper informed us. Alice and I nodded our heads as she took my hand and dragged me into the dreaded shop. She picked out several lacy pieces of underwear and if I was still human, I would have turned tomato red with embarrassment. She took me to the check out where a woman with blonde hair and a tan looked at us with envy. We paid for our things as the cashier kept glaring at us under her mascara covered eyelashes. When we were walking out of the shop, Alice and I looked at each other and started laughing. Unfortunately, I didn't see where I was going and bumped into someone. The impact didn't affect me but I looked down and saw a man who looked to be in his mid-twenties sprawled out across the floor, papers surrounding him.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" I apologised. He looked up at me and his eyes filled with lust. I crouched down and helped him pick up his papers. I saw that his eyes kept going from my lips, to my chest and then to my legs. The way he was staring at me made me feel uncomfortable. I glanced up at Alice and she nodded, running to fetch Edward.

Once we had gathered the papers, we stood up and I handed him my pile. As he took it, he tried to touch my skin but I easily avoided the contact. I looked at his face and saw that he had dull grey eyes and muddy brown hair.

"Why than you darlin'." he replied as he shuffled the papers around in his hands. He neatly folded them up and placed them in a hidden pocket on the inside of his coat, never taking his eyes off me. I nodded my head and stepped around him, but he grabbed my arm and blocked my way.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked, leering towards me. I leaned back slightly. "I can think of a few ways that you can apologise." He said as he greedily licked his lips.

"Um, no thanks." I replied. His grip on me tightened.

"Aww come on. Don't be like that sugar." He drawled. He tried to pull me closer when he was roughly dragged away from me. I blinked and saw Edward grab the man's collar, wind his fist back and punch the man right in the nose.

"Oh shit!" the man cried as he fell to the floor, clutching his nose. Edward started kicking him roughly in the stomach.

"DON'T. YOU. EVER. COME. NEAR. MY. GIRLFRIEND. AGAIN!" Edward roared, still kicking the man. Of course, he couldn't use the word mate as that would have aroused suspicion amongst the humans. The human must have been unconscious by now. When Edward stopped, he ran over to me.

"Are you ok?" he questioned, kissing every part of my face.

"Yes." I whispered. Edward kissed my lips passionately. We stopped when we heard the humans running towards us. We spotted three security guards sprinting towards us, their eyes locked on our little group.

Edward grabbed my hand and sprinted out of the shop at a fast human speed with Alice and Jasper close behind. We kept running until we were by Alice's Porsche. We hopped in and Alice started the engine, making it hum to life.

"Let's not do that again." I said. The others simply nodded in agreement as we pulled out of the lot and headed home.


	12. Back Home

Chapter 12: Back Home

Edward had made it profusely clear that I was not allowed to go shopping again. He didn't want to risk me running into another person who "thought that I belonged to them" as he had put it. Needless to say, no one dared to disagree with him; not even Alice.

Aside from Edward's rant, silence took hold of the car. It wasn't a peaceful one and I started dwelling on what my future held for me.

In the course of a week, my life had changed dramatically. I had come to this small town of Forks to live among humans. I acquired a nice, homey cabin and enrolled in high school. I met Edward and fell in love with him the moment I set eyes on him and, by some miracle, he felt the same.

_But it won't last for long…_ my mind thought. I sighed and pressed my forehead against the cool glass of the window, watching as the trees flew by. I knew Edward would start pestering me about my past and, to be honest, I found that I _wanted _to tell him. I wanted to let out all my anger and sorrow, all my guilt and despair. But he didn't know the real me. Once he heard about what I had done, he would be sure to kill me, without any hesitation. And if, somehow, he kept me alive, then he would look down at me in disgust. He would make sure that I leave Forks and never return. I felt the non-existent tears sting my eyes.

"What's wrong Bella?" Jasper asked. I forgot that he could feel my emotions.

"Nothing." I mumbled quietly. I felt my hand being grabbed and turned my head back and saw Edward staring at me intently.

"I think I'm ready to tell you." I whispered to him. Confusion crossed his face for a moment but then realisation dawned on his perfect features. He nodded and leaned in to kiss my lips. He pulled away much too soon and rested his forehead on mine.

"If you're sure." He replied. I nodded my head grimly and he gently kissed my forehead. I could see that Alice was bursting with questions but after what happened earlier in the bedroom between Edward and Jasper, she knew better then to start bombarding me with questions and kept her mouth shut and I highly appreciated her for doing that.

We pulled up at the Cullen house not too long after that. I slowly stepped out of the car, dreading the conversation I was about to have with Edward. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

_I have to do this. _I convinced myself, _For Emily…_

That one name made my decision for me. I snapped my eyes open and found Edward leaning against Alice's car, waiting for me. I reluctantly dragged my feet over to him. I hesitantly peeked under my eyelashes. He did nothing but stare at me.

"I believe you have some explaining to do." He said. I slowly nodded my head. Edward grabbed my hand and led me into the house. He started pulling me up in the direction of our…_his _room.

We were about to go up the stairs when Carlisle suddenly stepped in our way.

"Edward, Bella." He addressed seriously, "Family meeting. Living room. Now." He started to walk away from us.

"Why?" Edward asked, annoyance seeping in to his voice through his clenched teeth.

"Alice has seen something that you might want to know." And with that, he disappeared through a door which led to a room that I hadn't been in. I was somewhat grateful for this interruption as it gave me more time to think about what and how I would tell him. I quickly let go of his hand and started going up the steps. Edward grabbed my wrist.

"Where are you going, love?" he asked.

"Um…Carlisle wants to have a family meeting a-and I don't want to interrupt." I mumbled, looking down at the floor. I was too afraid to meet his eyes but it was true; I wasn't part of this family and I never would be after today. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him tense, probably in anger. His grip on my wrist tightened.

"Look at me." He demanded. I did my best to keep my eyes looking anywhere but at him.

"Isabella, look at me." Edward growled as his hold got even tighter. I shook my head and still refused to meet his gaze. A growl of fury ripped from his throat as he shoved me up against the wall. His hands were slammed against the wall on both sides of my face; there was no escaping him now.

"Did you not hear what I said my love?" he asked in a menacing tone. "Look. At. Me. _Now_." I didn't want to anger him further so I snapped my attention to him. "Good girl." He praised. He leaned his face towards mine and started to rub his face against mine. I knew he was marking me with his scent, but I didn't know why he was constantly doing it.

"E-Edward, why do you keep doing that?" I stuttered.

"Doing what?" he purred, continuing to mark me.

"Rub your face against mine. I-I mean, I understand why you do it, but I'm confused as to why you do it so often." He didn't stop his movements but moved down to my neck to nip lightly at my skin. I tried to hold back the moan as best as I could.

"I'm just marking what is mine, love. If my scent is off you for even a second, then other, _pathetic_ vampires will think you're unmated and I will have none of it." He spat. He raised his head so that he was eye level with me and leaned forward so that he was inches away from my face.

"Now." He began, "Tell me why you think you're not included in this family meeting." I gulped. I didn't want to tell him that it was because of my past because I knew that he would start doubting his love for me; I wanted to spend as much time with him as I could.

I hung my head slightly. "I don't know." I sighed. Edward's fingers curled around my chin and yanked it up so that I was looking him directly in the eye.

"You're lying Bella." He taunted. I felt myself shake a little under the pressure. His eyes started to turn black and I cowered back slightly. It was then that I could feel his power ruling over me. The authority in his voice had a new meaning to me and my body could no longer deny him anything that he wanted. Suddenly, I was saved by Emmett.

"Come on dudes!" he whined, "You can do that in your little love nest later! I wanna know what Alice has seen!" I had to giggle had the phrase "love nest". Edward rolled his eyes but looked at me sternly.

"We'll continue this later." He stated. I nodded my head weakly and he sighed and kissed my forehead, once again sending an electric shock through my body. "Come on love. Everybody's waiting for us." He grabbed my hand and led me into a dining room. It consisted of a long table with eight chairs surrounding it. Two chairs were unoccupied on the left side, presumably for me and Edward so we sat on them. Edward placed his hand on my thigh and started rubbing it up and down soothingly before squeezing it. I purred a little bit and heard chuckles from the rest of the family. I shut up instantly and looked down, embarrassed.

"Well," Carlisle started, "as you all know, Alice has seen something that I think may please a number of you."

"What is it?" Rosalie asked curiously, snuggling up to Emmett who was seated on the chair next to her.

"Well-"

"The Denali family are coming!" Alice interrupted. A collection of wicked smiles spread across the faces of the Cullen siblings, glints of humour and mischief twinkling within their eyes, apart from Edward who groaned.

"Oh Eddie!" Emmett laughed, "I think Tanya might be glad to see you again!" I stopped breathing for a second.

"Who is Tanya?" I asked, surprisingly calm, although on the inside, I was shaking in anger.

"Tanya is a girl who has an…obsession with Edward." Jasper explained, smirking at Edward. Edward snarled.

"I don't care what she does. I am going to stay with Bella the entire time they are here. I am not leaving her side." Edward seethed. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me so that I was on his lap. "_Bella _is my mate and I love her with all my heart, not Tanya!" he hissed. I was momentarily stunned. That was the first time he said that he loved me. I curled up against his chest and he tightened his hold on me.

"Edward, can you at least _try_ and be polite to Tanya?" Esme asked gently. Edward sighed and buried his head in my hair, taking a deep breath. I heard a gasp and whizzed around to find Alice's wide eyed form, staring at the wall blankly.

"Alice?" I questioned, concerned.

"Don't worry; she's just having another vision." Jasper informed me. I nodded my head and observed Alice in wonder. Suddenly, an ear shattering roar ripped out of Edward's chest.

"NO!" I managed to jump off his lap and run to the other side of the room and he jumped up from his chair.

"What is it?" Emmett asked seriously. Alice looked apologetically at me.

"The Denali's seemed to have acquired a new member. It's a male." Everyone looked round with a confused expression except for Edward who was pacing and growling profanities.

"Why is that such a big deal?" Jasper asked.

"An _unmated_ male." Alice said gravely. My eyes widened at what she was implying. A deadly silence took over the house and I noticed each couple move closer to each other. After a few minutes of absorbing the information, Carlisle decided to break the silence.

"When?" he inquired, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Three days." Alice responded. Edward stopped his pacing and glared at Emmett.

"No." he growled, "I don't want him within a hundred miles of her."

"Edward, we have no choice." Alice told him quietly. "They're coming here and you and Bella are going to stay. You have-"

"No. No. NO!" Edward snarled. He skilfully jumped over the table and scooped me up in his arms and sprinted into his bedroom. He threw me on the bed and locked the door. He started to breathe in deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger, trying to calm himself down.

I sat there for a moment, staring at him. The only time I had seen Edward angrier then this was the incident with Mike Newton. Out of nowhere, the image of Emily flashed in my mind. A new wave of confidence spread over me. I knew he wasn't in the right frame of mind but I needed to tell Edward my story. Now.

I slowly got up off the bed and shuffled my feet towards Edward. Once I was in front of him, I raised my hand and softly caressed his cheek. He sighed and placed his hand over mine, holding it to his cheek. He opened his eyes and the first emotion I saw was love. I felt like doing a happy dance then and there but now was not the time.

"I'm ready to tell you." I told him. Understanding flitted across his face and he nodded his head. He took both of my hands and pulled me over to the bed. We sat down and Edward stared at me.

"In your own time, love." He rubbed small circles on my hands with his thumbs, reassuring me that everything was alright. I closed my eyes and took in a shaky breath.

"It all started when my mom remarried."


	13. My Past: Part I

Chapter 13: My Past: Part I

_My mother and father, Renee Dwyer and Charlie Swan, had divorced when I was two years old. Renee took me away to live in Florida with her, but she was never the same. She would cry every night, she wouldn't get up until early afternoon and when she was up, she was a zombie; just sitting around, staring at nothing. _

_Because of her lack of, well…life, this meant that I had to look after myself. Each day, I would make my own breakfast, wash myself, walk to kindergarten by myself, learn at school, make my way back home, prepare my own dinner and then go to bed. I couldn't exactly say that I liked the life that I had been given, but it was heaven compared to what happened next._

_I noticed that my mom had life in her again. She was happier and was starting to look after me properly. I no longer heard her crying at night, and she would occasionally go out with a few of her friends; I was genuinely happy that I had my mommy back._

_When I was six, I noticed that Renee was going out more often and coming back later. She told me one day that she had a surprise for me. I was eagerly awaiting her arrival, literally bouncing on my feet in the hallway. Just then, the door knob twisted and my mom came back with a man. He looked about 5'11 with a shaven head and grey eyes. I looked to my mom and saw her eyes sparkle with happiness and excitement as she introduced me to the man._

"_Bella, this is Phil." She said, tenderly. Phil looked down at me._

"_Hello Bella. It's nice to meet you." He smiled at me, but something was off about it. It wasn't a friendly or happy smile. No. This smile was creepy and sent shivers down my spine. Renee was completely oblivious to this as she continued talking._

"_Phil is a minor league baseball player; isn't that exciting?" she squealed at me. I wasn't really a big fan of sports and my voice had caught in my throat so I simply nodded, not taking my eyes off Phil who was still smiling at me. _

_We proceeded to have dinner and I ate mine quietly, sneaking glances at Phil every now and then. Every time I looked, his eyes seemed to be calculating, darting between me and Renee occasionally. I couldn't stand the tension anymore so feigned tiredness and went to bed, wondering what Phil was up to._

_For the next few days, Phil would come over to our house for dinner and stay until the early hours of the morning. His weird behaviour didn't cease as he kept on giving me creepy looks and smiles. I tried not to be in the same room with him if I could help it, but sometimes I had to._

_One night, Phil decided that he would tuck me into bed so that he could "bond" with me. He tried to hold my hand in a fatherly way, but I kept my arms stiffly by my side. _

"_Hold my hand you little bitch." He hissed in my ear, so low that my mother couldn't hear. I froze. No one had ever spoken to me like that. Tears sprung to my eyes and I cried out as Phil grabbed my hand and squeezed it with too much force, making a few bones crack._

"_Shut up!" he ordered. I silenced immediately as he dragged me up the stairs to my room. He ripped open my bedroom door and threw me on the bed._

"_Say a word to your mommy and you'll regret it." He growled before slamming the door shut. After sitting in shock for a moment, I quickly buried myself in my bed sheets, hiding myself away from the world so that nothing could hurt me again. I felt tears roll down my cheeks as I shifted into a deep sleep._

_That happened for the next two years. We would have dinner together, watch T.V. for a bit and then Phil would "tuck" me into bed. My eyes were always red and puffy from crying myself to sleep. But things got a whole lot worse._

_Phil had proposed to my mom…_

_And she'd said yes._

_When they told me the news, I didn't respond. I was too numb, thinking about my future with that monster. Thinking about how he would be living with us now. They tried to snap me back into reality and when they did, I just ran upstairs and locked myself in my room and cried. _

_The wedding was only small and to my surprise, Charlie had attended. Renee had asked him to look after me whilst they went on their honeymoon for six weeks. I was rejoicing on the inside, but tried not to let it show as it might have given Renee the message that I was glad to see her go._

_Charlie had decided to stay in Florida to look after me. He had gotten time off work as the Chief of Police and was temporarily living in our house. It was the best six weeks of my life. I didn't go to sleep with one eye open. I didn't cry when I got back home. Charlie loved me. He held me on his lap when we were watching T.V., he would tuck me in properly with a kiss on the cheek accompanied by "Sweet dreams Bells". For once I was content with my life. But I knew it couldn't last._

_The six weeks flew by and before I knew it, Mom and Phil had come back off their honeymoon. Charlie had to leave so he could go back to his job and as soon as his car went around the corner, my world came crashing down. Phil placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed too tightly, causing me to wince._

"_Aren't you going to welcome us back Isabella?" he asked; I could detect the threat in his voice._

"_Welcome back." I mumbled and headed back into the house._

_Now that Phil was living with us, things had started to get progressively worse. Phil had somehow convinced my mom to get a full time job. She thought that Phil wanted her to do well in life, but it was really just to get her out of the house._

_One day, whilst she was at work, Phil had decided that we should spend some "quality time" together. _

"_What do you want to play Isabella?" he asked, a smirk spreading across his features. I put my head down, looking at my shoes._

"_I don't want to play anything." I replied in a quiet voice._

"_What did you say?" he seethed, rage dawning on his shapeless face. I snapped my head up to look at him, right in the eye. I didn't back down from is stare as I normally would have; this only seemed to anger him further as his face twisted into a sneer._

"_I. Don't. Want. To. Play. Anything. With. You." I said icily. Before I could react, Phil lunged at me. He grabbed a fistful of my hair and started dragging me up the stairs, with me kicking and screaming in protest. When we reached the top, he roughly pulled me up so that I was eye level with him._

"_You will not defy me, your father, ever again!" he spat at me._

"_You are not my father!" I screamed back. His eyes narrowed and he let me go. I scrambled up in front of him and when I had regained my balance, he placed his arms on my shoulders and pushed me down the stairs. As I tumbled down, I remembered what my life was like when Charlie was looking after me. No abuse. No screaming. Just the love of a father and his daughter. The memories comforted me as I fell and hit the floor with a thud. Pain took hold of my body and tears leaked down my face as I faded into blackness. Before I completely went under, I heard a ghastly voice in my ear._

_"Maybe that will teach you for disobeying me, my daughter." And with that, darkness wrapped around me._

_xoxox_

_I awoke to a strange beeping noise and it was hurting my ears. I tried to shift my position to get rid of the wretched noise, but no matter where I was, it was always beeping. With great effort I managed to crack my eyelids open, only to slam them shut as the light radiating around me blinded me._

"_Bella?" I heard a gentle voice call. I felt slight pressure on my hand, but I did not open my eyes._

"_Bella? Baby?" the voice called again. I exhaled slowly and tried to open my eyes once again. A slither of light crept through my lids, but I was now determined to open them fully. I managed to do it within five minutes, but I found that my vision was blurry. It was as if I was underwater. I saw a figure to the left of my bed. The figure was small, with reddish, frizzy hair which I recognised almost immediately._

"_Mom?" I whispered my voice hoarse._

"_Oh Bella!" she cried. She wrapped me up in a quick but gentle hug. I was too weak to respond so I just lay there, watching as she loved me. After a few minutes of crying, she kissed my head and pulled away._

"_Thank Goodness you're alright!" she gushed, "When I got home, I found an ambulance leaving our house and then Phil came out crying and told me what happened and then we rushed straight to the hospital. Oh my poor baby!" If I wasn't hurting so bad, I would have smiled in rejoice. Renee finally knew what that monster has been doing to me. Soon, she will divorce him and then mom and I will be happy again!_

"_Mom." I croaked out, "Where's Phil?"_

"_Oh, he went to get something to eat. He's too distraught about what happened. He said that he tried to catch you." My heartbeat sped up._

"_Mom, what did Phil tell you?" I asked carefully._

"_What do you mean?"_

_I took in a deep breath. "What happened to me?"_

"_You mean you don't remember?" she asked incredulously; I simply stared blankly at her, waiting for her to continue. "Well, you were going upstairs to your room when you tripped at the top and fell down the stairs. Phil practically dove for you but it was too late." By the end of her speech she was bursting in tears again, fumbling with her handkerchief. My fists clenched at the sheets. Phil had completely lied to my mother; she was still clueless. I couldn't live with him anymore._

"_Mom, that's not what happened." I told her quietly. She snapped her head to look at me; her eyes swimming in confusion._

"_What do you mean?" she questioned._

"_Well, you see, Phil-"The door to the room burst open and there stood a shaking Phil. He glanced threateningly at me before producing fake tears in his eyes._

"_Oh Bella!" he cried with false sadness. He rushed over to me and pulled me into a tight embrace._

"_Say anything and you're dead." He whispered coldly. I shuddered as he pulled away and went to sit by Renee._

"_Bella says that she didn't fall down the stairs." Renee informed Phil. He turned to glare angrily at me._

"_N-no." I protested, "I-I did. I mean, my memory is quite bad at the moment. It's all a blur really." Phil nodded in approval at my lie and I sunk back into the mattress, willing for this to be all over._

_When I was out of hospital, Phil had started to beat me constantly when Renee wasn't around. He would punch me, kick me and slap me. I was always covered in black and blue bruises and, sometimes, blood. I thought that my life couldn't get any worse, but how wrong I was._

"_Bella, come here quick!" Renee squealed from the front door. I sighed and put away my lighter. I had bought one in case Phil went too far and I had to protect myself from death. I was now thirteen years old, so Phil's beatings had been happening for four years now. I trudged down the stairs and found Renee bouncing on the spot with excitement, a grumbling Phil beside her._

"_What?" I asked, looking at Renee's form._

"_We're going to have a baby!" she burst. That was when I saw blackness._

_xoxox_

_Renee was six months gone and her bump was coming on lightly. I worshipped these past weeks as Renee was on maternity leave; that means no beatings for a whole year!_

_Renee came to join me in the lounge, sprawling across the sofa. She had a bowl in her hands and it smelt horrible._

"_What's in that?" I asked, inclining my head towards the bowl._

"_Ice cream." She replied cheerily. There was no way that there was only ice cream in there. I raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh ok. It's ice cream and pickles." She admitted, looking down._

"_Eww." I scrunched my nose up in protest. I continued watching the T.V. when I heard Renee squeak. I whipped around to face her and saw that her hand was planted on my stomach._

"_What is it?" I asked, panicked. She didn't respond, but she grabbed my hand and placed it on her stomach._

"_Mom, what-" I was cut off by a kick. I stared at Renee's stomach in amazement. I leaned in closer, wanting the baby to kick again. It must have read my mind as the little one kicked just where my hand was. Tears sprung to my eyes as I realised that this innocent little baby would have to put up with Phil. I promised myself then and there that I would protect my half brother or sister as best as I could from the clutches of Phil. I would be their protector._

_xoxox_

_All too soon, Renee had been whizzed off to hospital. The doctors tried to convince me to stay at home but with my stubbornness, I was allowed to go to the hospital too. _

_Renee had been wheeled in to the maternity ward and I reluctantly agreed to stay in the waiting area with Phil. The room was dull and didn't have any light to it. I was constantly pacing the boring blue carpet, eagerly awaiting the arrival of my new sibling. I glanced at Phil and saw that he was lying on two of the chairs, snoring. I rolled my eyes at him; how could he not care about his child that was being delivered right now?_

_Oh yeah. This was Phil we were talking about._

_xoxox_

_The hours felt like years. Renee had been in labour all night and we hadn't heard a word on how she was doing. Phil was still sleeping and I could see a bit of drool coming out of his open mouth. Maybe I could stick something down his throat…_

_My musings were interrupted by a tired looking nurse entering the waiting room. Phil shot up immediately and then rubbed his eyes and grumbled as he rested back on the chairs._

"_Congratulations." The nurse smiled at us, "It's a girl." I was starting to bounce in my seat._

"_Can I go and see her?" I asked. The nurse looked me up and down before smiling gently._

"_Your mother is quite tired at the moment, but yes, you may see her." I beamed at her and all but ran to where Renee was staying, tripping several times along the way. I turned the corner and dashed down the corridor to the grey double doors at the end. I pushed them aside and then froze where I was. _

_Renee had bags under her eyes, her face pale. Her hair was tied up, covered in sweat. But she was not what caught my attention._

_In her arms was a pink bundle. I approached it carefully and took a peek inside. I gasped at what I saw. _

_A peach, round face, with red cheeks was cuddled up to Renee. I could briefly see blonde strands of hair coming out of her head in little wires. I beamed at her; she looked so beautiful._

"_Hi baby." I whispered, stroking her warm cheek. She lifted her small pink hand and her tiny fingers curled around mine. She opened her eyelids and bright blue eyes stared back at me. The tears fell down my cheeks freely as I gazed lovingly at my new sister._

"_Isn't she wonderful?" Renee sighed._

"_She's much more that wonderful mom." I spoke reverently, never taking my eyes off the baby's small frame. A moment of silence passed over us before Renee broke it._

"_Where's Phil?" she asked. I gritted my teeth at what Phil might do to this little one; I would not let him hurt her in any way._

"_He's asleep." I answered curtly. I saw Renee frown out of the corner of my eye and glance at me and the baby._

"_Here." She said and held out the baby to me. I smiled gratefully at my mom and took my sister into my arms, cradling her to my chest. She was so warm and fragile; how this angel was produced by Phil I have no idea. Thinking of Phil made my anger rise, but when I looked back at my sister, I calmed immediately. An instinct took over me as I kissed her on the forehead; I felt more like the baby's mother than her sister._

"_What shall we call her?" Renee asked quietly. I gazed at my sister and only one name came to mind._

"_Emily." I firmly told her, "Emily Jane Swan." I decided to give her Charlie's last name as I couldn't stand the thought of her having Phil's last name. Renee nodded in approval and I ducked my head down, kissing Emily's forehead again._

"_I won't let any harm come to you." I whispered into Emily's ear so that Renee would hear. "I promise." I looked back up to Renee and saw that she was looking at the door. I followed her line of sight and saw Phil leaning against the doorway, smirking with an evil glint in his eye._


	14. My Past: Part II

Chapter 14: My Past: Part II

_Ever since she was born, I had not left Emily's side for anything. I refused to leave her at the possibility that Phil might get to her. Renee tried extremely hard to care for Emily and I did my fair share too. Despite all of her protesting, I had convinced Renee to let Emily sleep in my room and I fed her when she cried. I spend most of my time with her and only parted from her when Renee needed to feed her or when I was doing homework. On the other hand, Phil had kept his distance from me and Emily, which I was thankful for, although it did unnerve me; what was he up to?_

_Emily kept growing more and more as each day went by. We became extremely close and cherished every moment together. All too soon, we were celebrating her first birthday. I woke up bright and early, excited for her reaction to the present that I had got her. I took a shower and cleaned my teeth and headed back into my room as fast as I could. I swiftly changed into a grey tank top with a pair of denim short shorts; it was quite hot. I didn't bother with shoes as I enjoyed the feel of the carpet beneath my exposed toes. I turned my attention to the crib by the opposite wall and crept silently to peek at Emily. She had grown quite a bit and was now about one foot tall, with silky, curly blonde hair down to her shoulders. Her face had become more round and she had a loving glow about her. She couldn't walk or talk but I was hoping that she would be doing that soon. I glanced at the time and saw that it was eight in the morning; this was normally the time that I woke her up._

_As predicted, Emily started to stir in her cot. She raised her little arms to stretch and an adorable yawn escaped her mouth, making me chuckle. She rubbed one of her eyes lazily and drowsily opened her eyes. As soon as she saw me, a heart breaking smile lit up her face and she squealed. I smiled back down at her and she reached for me, wanting me to hold her. I carefully picked her up and slowly walked around the room with her. Balancing her in one of my arms, I opened the curtains and bright sunlight filled the room. Emily squirmed and buried her face in my chest. I laughed and opened the windows, allowing fresh air to circulate around the room._

_I took her downstairs, cooing at her as I got out the bottle of milk from the fridge. She squealed in delight as she saw the bottle in my hands. I put it in her mouth and she greedily suckled. I looked out of the window as she fed. Phil hadn't touched me since Emily was born; I had almost forgotten about him completely as he was scarcely around anymore. Almost._

_Emily pushed the bottle away and I rubbed her back, making her burp. Once she did, I put the bottle away and headed back upstairs with her, running a warm bath for her. I washed her small body with great care and gentleness as she laughed at the bubbles that she had made. Once she was squeaky clean, I dried her off with a fluffy towel and then brought her back into my room where I put her in a cute little blue and white dress with white tights. I lifted her back up into my arms and then travelled back into the kitchen where I placed Emily in her high chair whilst I poured myself some cereal. Emily watched me in fascination as I ate and started making me laugh me she copied my chewing motions. Once I was finished, I cleaned my bowl and placed myself in the lounge with Emily on my lap. She started to play with strands of my hair which were now down to my waist; I couldn't give up precious time with my sister for a haircut. _

_Renee and Phil came downstairs half an hour later. As soon as she saw Emily, Renee whizzed over to us and plucked her out of my arms, spinning her around the room singing "Happy Birthday!". I laughed at her display of affection. I glanced at Phil and saw that he had fallen back asleep on the couch and I had the most powerful urge to hit him with something._

_I looked after Emily whilst Renee went to buy a cake. I placed her on the sofa and I hovered over her, ready to catch her if she fell. Suddenly, I heavy hand clamped into my hair._

"_Don't worry; we'll go back to our old ways soon enough. I might even let the baby into our little fun." Phil's disgusting voice mused in my ear. Fear gripped at my heart, but it didn't overpower the surge of rage I felt towards him. If he hurt a hair on Emily's head I would kill him. My fists clenched and I was about to hit him but the front door opened and Renee placed the cake down in the kitchen._

"_Phil, darling? Can you help me with this shopping please?" Renee called out. Phil pulled my hair a little bit as a warning and then stalked outside to help Renee. The tears stung my eyes and I turned around to face Emily. She looked at me gravely, as if she knew what had happened, and reached out for me. I picked her up and she clung to my neck, burying her face into the crook of my neck._

"_Don't worry; I won't let him hurt you. I promise." I repeated to her._

_The afternoon flew by and before I knew it, it was time to open presents. We made a small circle around Emily who was lying on her back in the middle._

"_Our presents first!" Renee squealed. She and Phil had decided to combine together to get Emily loads of cuddly toys, but that was only because Phil couldn't think of anything to get her. I snorted; like he cared. _

_Emily was amused by the toys she received and threw them everywhere, laughing gleefully as they flew in the air._

"_What did you get her Bella?" Renee asked, curiosity radiating off her bouncing form. I quickly dashed up the stairs and retrieved the little box that I had kept hidden for two weeks. I sprinted back down to Emily and produced the box in front of her. She cocked her head to the side as she looked at it and smiled when she saw me start to unwrap it. The jewellery box lay flat in the palm of my hands. Emily leaned closer to observe it and I opened it up, revealing the silver heart locket inside. I took it out of its case and cautiously opened it. Inside it read _"Emily Jane & Isabella Marie"_ with a picture of both of us. I showed it to Emily who clapped in delight. I cautiously clasped it around her neck and kissed her on the forehead._

"_Happy Birthday Emily." I whispered. I pulled away from her joyous little body and saw Renee blubbering out of the corner of my eye. I reached out to Renee and hugged her tight, still keeping an eye on Emily who was twirling the locket around in her fingers. I closed my eyes as I comforted my mom when I heard the best sound in the world._

"_Izzy." A small voice giggled. My eyes snapped open and I directed my gaze to Emily. Renee must have heard it too._

"_Did she just-?"_

"_I think so." I whispered. I let go of Renee and crawled on the floor to Emily who was playing with the locket. _

"_What did you say?" I asked her. She giggled again._

"_Izzy." My heart leapt and I jumped up with Emily in my arms and started twirling around the room._

"_Oh my God! She said my name!" I cried. Renee came rushing over and kissed us both on our heads, wrapping us up in an embrace._

"_Isn't that amazing Phil?" Renee gushed. He turned to us in disinterest before grunting and turning on the T.V._

_xoxox_

"_Ok Em, you know the drill." I told her as I walked her back from kindergarten. Emily was now four years old. I was so proud the day that she started walking. She could talk too, but liked to abbreviate. Her bouncy blonde hair was now down to the middle of her back. She was about three foot tall now and was wearing a lovely pink and white dress. Watching Emily grow up had made me want to be a mother. I wanted to find Mr. Right, marry him and have children of my own._

_But I knew that couldn't happen, not with Phil around. Once Renee started working again, the beatings came back, although they were much worse than before. I was constantly buying make-up so that I could cover up the cuts and bruises so that no one would be suspicious; they all thought I was like any other typical seventeen year old girl. Phil had given up his baseball last year which meant that he was at home all the time, unless he was out drinking which he normally did after he beat me. _

_We turned the corner and I gave Emily's hand a reassuring squeeze. I had managed to hide her when she was younger so that Phil couldn't get to her. Now that she was older she started to hide herself. She didn't really know what was going on, but she did tell me one day that she had heard me crying at night. Never in my life had I felt guiltier._

_We approached the front door when Emily clung to me, tears falling down her cheeks._

"_Be safe." She mumbled into my waist. Of course, I couldn't promise her that. I tilted her chin up with my fingers and wiped away her tears._

"_I'll do my best." I promised. I kissed her forehead and placed my hand on the door knob, dread flooding over me from what was about to come. I glanced back at Emily's shaking form._

"_Are you ready?" I gently asked her. She took in a few deep breaths and nodded her head. I quickly opened the door and Emily rushed inside the house, darting up the stairs to find a place where she could hide. I closed the front door urgently before being picked up and thrown onto the floor. I cried out in pain as my back hit the wooden floor._

"_Welcome home Isabella." Phil sneered. He lifted his heavy boot and kicked me in the stomach several times. I did my best to hold in any noise so that Emily didn't hear anything. I was doing a good job until he rolled me over onto my back and slammed his boot down on my arm. I screamed out to the heavens, hoping that any minute this agony would end. I started seeing darkness when Phil suddenly dropped down beside me with a sudden thud. I looked up and saw Emily with one of Phil's baseball bats; she must have hit him on the head. My eyes were closing but I kept gazing at my saviour. She started crying loudly, dropped the baseball bat and lay next to me. The last thing I felt was Emily's lips on my hair as I drifted into unconsciousness._

_xoxox_

_I had sent Emily around to her friend's house that night. I was too scared of what Phil would do when he remembered what had happened, but luckily, he thought that he passed out from having too much alcohol, even though he was sober at the time._

_I was currently preparing dinner when the doorbell rang. That was odd; we didn't normally have visitors. I heard a bit of shuffling in the lounge and a second later, Renee appeared and went to answer the door._

"_Charlie!" I heard her welcome kindly. I dropped everything I was doing and sprinted to the front door, having to catch myself several times along the way. I stopped short when I saw Charlie in his police uniform with his gun belt still on. _

"_Dad!" I cried and flung myself at him. He laughed as he caught me and spun me around on the front step._

"_Hey Bells." He chuckled. I briefly saw Phil with his fists clenched, glaring at me and Charlie but soon rearranged his features into false welcoming._

"_Ah, Charlie. What a surprise." Phil greeted and shook Charlie's hand. "Won't you come in? We were just about to eat." As if on cue, Charlie's stomach grumbled. We all laughed as Charlie looked down and blushed._

"_Come on." Renee playfully scolded, gently pushing Charlie into the house, "You need to be fed." Charlie chuckled as they headed into the dining room. I was about to join them when a hand grabbed my arm._

"_I'm your father, not him." Phil hissed, digging his nails into my skin. I yelped out in pain._

"_What's wrong?" Renee called frantically._

"_Nothing." I replied, "I just stubbed my toe." She rolled her eyes and the adults sat down as I dished up dinner. The conversation was mainly about Charlie who had come to Phoenix on "official police business". I ate my dinner in silence._

_After we ate, I cleaned up and we all sat in the lounge, watching the baseball that was on the T.V. Phil and Charlie were hooting and cheering, Renee was laughing at the men whilst I stared blankly at the screen, not seeing anything. Now that Charlie was here, I could get Phil locked away for good. I could announce that Phil had been beating me right here, right now. Then Charlie would take him away and Renee, Emily and me could move and restart our lives._

_Making my decision I stood up off the floor and turned off the T.V. and turned around to face an angry Phil, a grumpy Charlie and a confused Renee._

"_What's wrong sweetie?" Renee asked me gently. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. My anxiety was suddenly replaced by determination; I had to put Phil away. I snapped my eyes open and glared at Phil._

"_Mom, ever since you met him." I spat, pointing at Phil, "He has been abusing me."_

_A deathly silence passed over everyone until Renee started laughing._

"_Oh don't be so silly Bella!" she giggled, "Phil wouldn't hurt you." I stared at her wide-eyed. How could she not believe me?_

"_How can you accuse me of this?" Phil asked, pretending to be heart broken. Charlie looked between Renee and Phil and then looked at me._

"_Come on Bells. I think it's time you went to bed." Charlie said calmly. Anger started to bubble up inside of me._

"_How can you not believe me?" I shouted._

"_Bella!" Renee scolded._

"_Ok then. Where did I get these then? Huh?" I challenged, pulling up my jumper and shirt to reveal my black and blue stomach. Phil snorted._

"_That's where you fell out of bed this morning." He lied, looking me dead in the eye._

"_WHAT!" I screeched, "YOU KICKED ME SENSELESS TODAY. THAT'S WHY I'VE SENT EMILY AWAY SO THAT SHE DOESN'T HAVE TO FACE YOU!" I pointed my finger right at his face._

"_Alright Bella, calm down." Charlie tried to soothe me. It helped a little bit. I started gasping and running my fingers furiously through my hair._

"_Honey, you've just been under a lot of stress with Emily. Come on, you're tired. I'll tuck you in." Renee started to get up but I angrily pushed her back down. All I saw was red._

"_NO!" I roared, "IF YOU WON'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT THEN I WILL!" I spotted Charlie's gun still in his gun belt. I lunged for it and ripped it out of its pocket before Charlie could react. I loaded the gun and pointed it at Phil._

"_BELLA!" Renee screamed. I didn't wait as I pulled the trigger. The gun shot off and Phil flew backwards onto the sofa, blood pouring out of his head. I could see that he was dead._

_For a moment, everything went still. No one dared to even breathe. Finally, Phil was gone from my life, from this world. I cackled with glee like a mad woman when Charlie came behind me and tried to tackle me. I elbowed him in the chest and he started wheezing, letting me go instantly. I snorted; some cop._

_Adrenaline still ran through my body so I turned and shot at Charlie, whose lifeless form fell to the ground, his blood pooling around his head. I jumped up and down, enjoying every moment of this. I heard a whimpering behind me and turned around to find Renee cowering in the corner. My good mood instantly vanished and hate took its place. I started to slowly walk towards Renee and smirked as she tried to scramble away._

"_You think you can escape?" I asked her sarcastically. Tears poured down her cheeks and her lips quivered._

"_P-Please." She cried weakly, "I-I'm sorry."_

"_Sorry?" I repeated, "You're sorry?" I paused for a moment as she nodded her head. "What exactly are you sorry for, Renee?" I knelt in front of her trembling form, getting to eye level with her, "Sorry that I had to live with that monster for God knows how long? Sorry that I am scarred for life? Sorry that Phil didn't finish me off?" I seethed, venom lacing my words. She shook her head feebly. "Then tell me. What are you sorry for?" I used the nozzle of the gun to push a bit of hair out of her eyes._

"_I-I…I…" she stuttered._

"_See? You're not sorry about anything." I pointed the gun next to her left temple._

"_What about Emily!" she blurted out. I smiled evilly at her._

"_Oh, don't worry mother dearest. I will take care of Emily. I will be like a mother to her; the mother you never were to me." Renee's sobs got louder. "You're just pathetic." I spat._

"_B-But I-I'm your m-m-mother." She whimpered. I leaned down to her ear, opposite to where the gun was still held at her temple._

"_You stopped being my mother a long time ago." And with that, I pulled the trigger. A loud bang sounded and Renee's body slumped against the wall. _

_I stood up from my crouching position and looked around me. Suddenly, my angry mood had gone and nausea took its placed. I stared at the lifeless bodies, the people that I had murdered. I dropped the gun to the floor and heard it clatter against the wood. Tears blurred my vision and I started gasping. I looked down at my hands and saw that they were covered in blood; my family's blood. I started to step backwards until my back hit the wall. I slid down the wall and brought my knees up to my chest. I started rocking myself back and forth. Self hatred took over me as I glared at my hands. I was now a murderer. The police would lock me up in jail and then I would never see Emily again._

_Emily…_

_I realised that I had to keep going, for Emily. We could run away and start over as new people, change our names, change our styles, move out of America. I smiled as I imagined our perfect future._

_I wiped away the tears from my eyes and pulled myself up off the ground. I hastily picked up the gun and shoved it in my back pocket. If I was going to get out of this, then I would have to destroy any evidence. I would not leave the gun in case it didn't get destroyed._

_I felt around for my lighter that I had had since I was thirteen. I always carried it with me. I clutched on to it tight and quickly ran to Phil's wallet to get as much money as I could. He had well over a thousand dollars in there so I greedily grabbed it and stuffed it in my other pockets. I picked up the rug in the lounge and placed it over the fire place and the floor. I opened my lighter and flicked it so that the flame came out. I stared at the orange and yellow colours in amazement for a few moments before dropping it onto the carpet below. Almost immediately, it set on fire and I leisurely strolled out of the now burning house. As I was walking down the street, intending on retrieving Emily, I heard a shrill scream. I looked around quickly when the scream sounded again. The scream seemed to be coming from the house, but that wasn't possible. No one but our family went in our house and everyone in my family was dead. Except for Emily._

_Emily…_

_Emily!_

_**EMILY!**_

_I dashed as quickly as I could back into the scalding house. I kicked open the front door as flames licked against my arms. I cried out but proceeded to run up the stairs, taking two at a time. Smoke filled my lungs and I coughed, trying to get the soot out of my system._

"_EMILY!" I screamed._

"_IZZY! HELP ME!" I heard her cry. I followed the sound of her voice and came to her bedroom. The door was locked so I tried to kick it again. But it wouldn't budge._

"_HURRY! PWEASE!" she screamed. The tears blurred my vision but I would not give up on her._

"_HANG ON EMILY! STAY WITH ME!" I ordered her. After ten kicks, the door finally burst open. I frantically looked around the flame engulfed room until I found Emily lying unconsciously under her bed sheets. I scurried over to her and whipped her up in my arms. I ripped off a bit of my shirt and covered her nose and mouth with it so that she wouldn't have to breathe in the toxic fumes. I ran back to the stairs, but they were already falling apart. My eyes darted for any possible escape route and I saw the open window at the end of the landing. I sprinted to the window and quickly opened it further with my foot. Thankfully, there was a branch that Emily and I would often run across when Phil and Renee weren't here. I carefully stepped out into the cold night air and balanced myself on the branch. I carefully stepped across the branch until we were safe in the tree. I sat down between the trunks of the tree and cradled Emily in my arms, removing the rag covering her airways. I stroked her marred face and her burnt hair and I couldn't stop the tears that landed on her still form. I kissed her forehead, whispering words of comfort in her ear. I looked back at the now destroyed building and kept watching as I heard sirens in the distance._

_xoxox_

_I held her hand as the heart monitor kept beeping, telling me that she was still alive. My head rested on her bed, eyes closed. I hadn't left her side since she had come here. My eyes were sore from all the crying that I had been doing. I squeezed my eyes tighter and prayed that she would be ok. _

_Someone must have heard my prayer for her little body stirred. My head snapped up as I stared at her. Her head was lolling slightly and she took in steady breaths. I saw her little eyes peek open and she winced at the light. Tears started to fill my eyes once again; this was all my fault._

_"Izzy?" she coughed. Hearing her innocent sweet voice made the tears start to trickle down my cheeks. Her ocean blue eyes were red and swollen. Her once rosy cheeks and creamy skin were now marred with scars, burns and bruises. Tiny cuts sprayed across the left side of her face and her beautiful soft blonde hair was now matted with sweat and scraped back onto the pillow. I could only just see her tiny chest moving up and down as she struggled to breathe. I stayed where I was, not blinking, not moving. Soon she would remember what happened and then she would hate me forever. Being with me almost cost her her life._

_"Oh God!" I choked. I buried my face in my hands; too ashamed to look at what I had done. "I'm so sorry." _

_"S'not your fault." She whispered. I heard her start panting heavily and coughing horribly. The doctors ran in, shooing me from the room. I started to cry harder as I was placed in the waiting room. A nurse tried to comfort me but I forcefully shrugged her off. This was all my fault. She could die because of me._

_She was only four…_

_xoxox_

_It had been two weeks since Emily woke up and she seemed to be getting better and better. The police didn't find out how the fire started, but they knew that it had been started on purpose. I pretended that I didn't know how it happened._

_Emily told me that she stayed at home that night because she was too scared to leave her room because of Phil. I understood her completely but the overwhelming guilt I felt didn't ease my being._

_I headed to the reception in the hospital, ready to visit Emily again._

"_Emily Jane Swan, please." I told her. She typed something into her computer when it beeped. Her eyes widened and she looked at me with sympathy._

"_I'm sorry. You won't be able to see her." The receptionist told me._

"_Why not?" I demanded._

"_Well…I'm very sorry to tell you this but…Emily died late last night." My world came crashing down. Emily…gone? No. NO! That couldn't be! She was alive, she had to be! She had to live! I started choking on the air and arms came fluttering around me as I collapsed onto the floor._

"_No. Not her. My angel. My baby. My Emily." I whispered as blackness overthrew me._

_xoxox_

_The club was loud. The music from the DJ pounded against the walls where couples were dancing, or more like grinding against each other. I snorted and winced as I poured the vodka down my throat. I had lost count as to how many shots of vodka I had actually had, but my vision was blurry and I couldn't stoop hiccupping. _

_With my head pounding, I decided to call it a night and stumbled out of the club onto the sidewalk. My ice blue cocktail dress showed off my legs a bit too much, but I really didn't care. Emily was gone because of me. If it wasn't for me, she still would have been here._

_I wailed at stumbled into an alleyway. Emily had died four months ago and I just couldn't cope anymore. I had had a mental break down and had cut my hair so it was very messy, hanging down to the middle of my back limply. I leaned my back against the grubby wall of the alley when I felt something poke at my lower back. I shuffled around in my dress and something hit the floor. I looked around me and saw it._

_The gun._

_I shakily picked it up and stared at it. If this was the only way I could see her again, then so be it._

_I bravely brought the gun up to my temple, tears leaking out of my eyes. I took in a shaky breath and squeezed my eyes shut. Just as I was about to pull the trigger, a cool hand grasped my hand which held then gun._

"_Don't." I heard a gentle voice whisper, and that's when the pain in my neck started._

_xoxox_

_Every cell in my body felt like it had exploded. Fire coursed through my veins as I was being burned alive. I kept on screaming out for someone to kill me, but no one responded._

_I had been burning like this for what seemed like an eternity. Only then did I notice that the pain was beginning to fade from my fingers and toes. I clenched my mouth shut as I relished the feeling of numbness. After about ten minutes, the pain had completely gone. I took in a deep clean breath and my throat burned. I hissed at the scorching sensation and snapped my eyes open. My vision seemed like it had improved. I could see everything with perfect clarity. I could hear a river running by and the gentle breeze as it made the leaves on the trees shudder. _

"_I see you're awake." A deep voice spoke. I jumped up within a sixteenth of a second and was momentarily stunned. The voice chuckled._

"_Who are you?" I asked, "What's happened to me?" I heard footsteps approaching and I whizzed round, only to come face to face with a man._

_His pale skin shone in the moonlight, his brown hair was scruffy looking, but his features were perfect. I looked him from head to toe and observed his big muscles that his shirt and jeans clung to. He looked about twenty two years old. I looked into his eyes and saw that they were a frightening burgundy colour. I gasped and jumped back._

"_Y-Your eyes." I stuttered, "T-They're-"_

"_The same as yours, my dear." He purred. I froze. Did he really just purr? I shook my head and looked around at my surroundings. I noticed that we were in a dense forest. I was very confused; there weren't any forests in Phoenix. I turned back to the stranger who was now only inches away from me. I looked down and realised that I was still wearing the ice blue cocktail dress. I felt uncomfortable that so much of my flesh was showing so I tried to subtly pull down my dress. I glanced back up at the vampire._

"_How did you do that?" I asked him. He cocked his head to the side, his expression amused._

"_Do what?" he playfully asked._

"_Get over to me so fast." He chuckled and leaned in further; I took an involuntary step away from him._

"_I am a vampire." He stated simply. My eyes widened in shock._

"_A v-vampire?" I repeated, fear gripping me. _

"_Yes. And so are you, love." He smiled gently. I gasped, but when I did, the burn in the back of my throat returned. My hand automatically flew up to my throat in an attempted to ease the pain. The vampire gently took my hands._

"_That means you're thirsty. Let's hunt, love." He started to pull me along._

"_Wait, what's with the whole "love" thing?" I asked._

"_Well, you are my mate and I thought-"_

"_WHAT!" I screeched. His mate? How the hell could I be his mate? "I'm not your mate!" I told him firmly. Suddenly, his eyes narrowed and he hissed at me, pushing me up against a tree._

"_Yes you are!" he hissed, "And don't you dare think otherwise!" His lips then crashed onto mine. A growl started erupting in his throat when I didn't respond. I tried to push him away but his grip tightened on me._

_Suddenly, another growl echoed throughout the forest and the vampire that had me pinned spun around. He crouched down in front of me and snarled as I saw another male approach. He had dirty blonde hair pulled back in a pony tail. He looked to be about thirty years old and had shocking black eyes. I guessed by his pale skin that he was a vampire as well._

"_GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY MATE!" the blonde male roared, deranged._

"_SHE'S MINE!" the first male hissed. Snarls came from their chests and suddenly, they lunged at each other. They started clawing and kicking each other. I stared in shock at their hospitality. And all because of me. I couldn't stand to watch this terrifying display, so I did the first thing that came into my head._

_I ran._

_My feet didn't touch the dirt as I practically flew through the forest. I darted in and out of trees, taking different paths so the other males could not find me if they wanted to. After half an hour of mindless running, a mouth watering scent hit my nose. All reasoning left my mind as I followed the scent at lightening speed. I came onto a trail when I saw him. A human hiker, obviously lost. He had his map out in front of him glancing at the map and then his surroundings, only to go back to the map again. I smiled evilly and let my instincts take over. I coiled myself into a ball and then sprang at the unsuspecting human. I heard him start to scream but muffled his nose and mouth with my hand. I ripped his head to the side and licked my lips as I saw his pulse rising out of his neck. I didn't hesitate as I plunged my teeth into his neck. I moaned as the warm, thick, rich liquid poured down my throat. The weak human tried to fight me off but his attempts were feeble. Soon he died down and all that was left was his lifeless body on the forest floor. I licked the blood off his neck and my lips and dropped him to the floor. I looked down at the man and realised what I had done. I had just killed an innocent man. I looked at his drained body again. I had just taken away his soul. He could have a wife waiting for him. He could have someone like Emily…_

_I wailed to the heavens and ran as fast as I could to anywhere. I destroyed trees in my path as I charged through the dense forest. In front of me was a clearing and I stopped. I looked ahead and saw that it was unoccupied. I hesitantly stepped forwards and saw that located in the middle of the grass was a pond. I hurriedly ran over to it and looked at my reflection. I screamed at what I saw._

_Blood red eyes stared back at me. My messily cut hair was now a luscious brunette that flowed softly down to the middle of my back. My skin was pale white and strong, my features were perfect._

_I was perfect._

_I was a monster._

_The body of the man sprung back into my mind and I covered my face in my hands. I swore then and there that I would never harm humans again. They had a family, they had lives._

_The image of Emily burned in the back of my lids and I screamed out in agony. I had taken away lives._

_I would never do that again._

_Ever._


	15. Haven

Chapter 15: Haven

I was lying flat on the bed, my arm covering my closed eyes. I breathed in deeply and peeked a look at Edward from under my arm.

There he was, standing rigidly by the window, glaring murderously at the outside world. His arms were folded tightly across his chest and I could hear his shaky breathing. He hadn't moved from this position since I had finished telling him my story. He had simply stared at me for a couple of minutes and silently moved towards the window.

I sighed as I placed my arm back over my eyes. I just wanted him to say something; _anything_. Even if it was to cast me away I just wanted the chance to hear his velvet, melodious voice that I would do anything for.

Suddenly, I heard movement outside of our room. I shifted my position on the bed so that I was sitting cross-legged on the covers, facing the door. I quickly glanced at Edward but saw that he was unfazed by the approaching beings; he had probably read their minds. A moment later, a quiet knock sounded on the door. I knew that Edward was in no state to answer the door.

"Come in." I called quietly. The doorknob twisted and the door creaked open. Stood outside of it were the rest of the Cullens, sympathy written on all of their faces.

"You heard?" I questioned in a flat voice. They silently nodded. I sighed and buried my face in my hands. For a split second, everything went deadly silent, until my sobs started echoing through the room. A pair of gentle arms wrapped around my shoulders comfortingly. I quickly looked up and saw Esme staring at me with a heart broken expression. I sobbed even harder; no one deserved to be affected by _my _past. I didn't deserve their sympathy; I had caused nothing but pain to this family.

Esme immediately crushed me into a hug, her arms forming a loving cage around me. She rubbed my back and started rocking us back and forth, trying to calm me and herself down.

"Oh my poor daughter!" she cried, "My baby!" I squeezed my eyes shut and buried myself further into her chest. Esme's sobs now joined mine and soon I was engulfed in other sets of arms. Alice had joined in our embrace, her eyes filled with venom. She clung tightly to my arm and started wailing in sadness. I faintly heard another set of sniffles and glanced up at Rosalie who had her face buried in Emmett's chest.

"Oh Rose!" I cried. Without thinking, I ran up to her and wrapped my arms around her. After a moment of shock she responded by wrapping her arms tightly around me.

"B-Bella." She trembled, "I-I'm so s-sorry!" she started sobbing even louder and she buried her face in my neck. Jasper went to comfort Alice who was now hugging Esme whilst Emmett looked at me and Rosalie in remorse. Carlisle silently glided over to Edward and whispered something in his ear.

"How could someone do such a thing?" Jasper murmured to himself whilst shaking his head slowly.

"I don't know, but I would have been on my way to kill him if Bella hadn't had done it." Emmett replied icily. More guilt overwhelmed me and I clung tighter to Rosalie. Calmness washed over me and I turned to Jasper.

"Please." I whispered, "I don't deserve to feel better. I need to be punished." I heard a sharp intake of breath and saw Edward wheel around to face me. His eyes were coal black and his lips were in a tight line.

"Everybody out." Edward growled, not taking his eyes off me. Rosalie slowly let me go. Nobody was sure whether to go or not but Edward got easily frustrated, "OUT!" he roared. Everybody ran out of the room with their mates. I turned to the door and was about to leave when Edward suddenly appeared in front of me. He grabbed my wrists and pinned them to my sides. He leaned in so that his face was only a couple of inches from mine.

"Now, you listen to me Isabella. There is no way in _hell _that you deserve to be punished. Do you hear me? That sick bastard got what he deserved." Edward hissed.

"But what about Charlie? And Renee? They didn't deserve to die Edward." I whispered shamefully. Edward shook his head and let go of my wrists. He angrily started pacing back and forth, snarls erupting out of his throat.

"I don't blame you Bella." He told me sternly, "They weren't good parents for you. They ignored you and didn't believe you when you told the truth." He ran is fingers through his tangled hair, tugging at it in frustration.

"But what I did to Phil-"

"NO!" Edward roared. He lunged at me and pinned me up against the wall. I could feel his heavy breath on my throat, "DO NOT SAY THAT NAME EVER AGAIN!" He raised his fist and slammed it against the wall, making a hole in the wall.

"E-Edward." I begged. "Please s-stop." He scowled at me and removed his hands from the wall. He slowly stalked around the room before picking up his music system and hurling it into the opposite wall. I covered my mouth with my hand, trying to conceal the sobs that were threatening to come out. Edward then swiped his hands across his shelves, shattering his CDs and tearing his books. The venom filled my eyes and I started trembling. He then ran over to the wardrobe and started punching it, making the wood splinter. I couldn't take it anymore so I cried out and ran from the room. I slammed the door shut behind me and dashed into one of the spare bedrooms. Once inside, I closed the door quickly and spun around, pressing my back against the wood. I slumped against it and slid down until I hit the floor. I brought my knees up to my chest and sobbed.

A few minutes later, I heard a knock on the door.

"Bella?" Alice called, "Can I come in?" I slowly got up off the floor and twisted the doorknob, allowing Alice to come inside. She walked in and I shut the door behind her. She stood still in the middle of the room when she suddenly spun around to face me.

"How are you?" she asked quietly. I merely shrugged, not trusting my voice. Alice nodded her head thoughtfully. "Don't worry; the men are trying to calm him down." I stared blankly at her and she sighed.

"Look. I know I must be really annoying you by prying you away from Edward and such. But I've seen that we're going to be best friends, well you _are _my best friend, and it's really hard to spend time with you since you and Edward are newly mated. So I just want to say that I'm sorry for annoying you. Am I forgiven?" she put on big puppy eyes and an irresistible pout. I quickly replayed what she'd said to me in my head and couldn't help but start laughing.

"What's so funny?" she asked, still saddened.

"Alice you silly woman! You're not annoying me at all!" I giggled.

"So…you're not mad at me?" Alice asked with a hopeful glint in her eye. I shook my head.

"Of course not, and just for the record, you're my best friend too." I told her sincerely. She squealed extremely loud before tackling me to the ground in a hug. I laughed at Alice's gesture but was soon cut off when I heard footsteps coming towards the door. Alice gracefully leapt off me before sending me a wink and going out of the door. I stood up, a bit confused, and sat down on the bed. I heard murmurs outside of the door but they were too low for me to distinguish who it was or what they were saying. I crossed my legs and waited patiently.

The doorknob twisted gently along with the sound of rhythmic footsteps dancing away. The door opened fully to reveal my Greek God. He stayed where he was for a moment, searching my face for something. He slowly took a step towards me, but I didn't move. I showed no emotion on my face as he came over to me, regret and hurt burning in his eyes. He hesitantly took my hand and gently pulled me off the bed. I was now in a position where I was stood directly in front of him. He slowly brought his hand up and caressed my cheek lovingly. I closed my eyes and leaned into his touch. The electric sparks shot through me from where our skin made contact, making my insides feel fuzzy and warm.

"Bella?" Edward whispered softly. I slowly opened my eyes and came into contact with his warm topaz eyes. I saw the venom leak into his eyes.

"I-I'm so s-sorry Bella." He sobbed. He closed his pained eyes and touched his forehead to mine. "I-I didn't m-mean to scare you." His eyes snapped open and a horrified expression crossed his face. "Oh God, I didn't hurt you did I?" He put me at arms length and frantically searched my body for any injury. I shook my head.

"No," I assured him quietly, "You didn't hurt me." I saw relief wash over his face. He pulled me into his chest and held me tightly. He repeatedly pressed his lips to my hair. I closed my eyes and inhaled his scent. It suddenly occurred to me that my mother used to do this when I was sad; she used to hold me and kiss my hair, telling me that I would be alright.

A new round of sobs broke through my body and I clung tighter to Edward.

"What is it?" he asked, his voice breaking at the end as he started to cry along with me.

"The memories, Edward. They won't go away." A moment of silence was held between us.

"I'll make them go away." Edward whispered, almost too low for me to here. I looked up at his determined face.

"What?" I questioned. He looked down at me.

"I'll make them go away Bella." Edward's voice took on a new tone of determination and force, his eyes blazing. Before I could register anything else, Edward crashed his lips to mine roughly. I moaned and immediately craved more. His tongue slid across my bottom lip, begging for entrance and I happily accepted, opening my mouth wide enough so that he could explore it. Keeping one arm firmly around my waist, his fingers fisted my hair and he pulled my face closer to his. I locked my arms around his neck and pressed my body even tighter to his. I heard a growl of lust coming from his chest and I felt my knees go weak. Edward broke the kiss to shower my face in loving kisses. Suddenly, he swiped my feet from underneath me and caught my head before I fell to the floor. He cradled me against his chest and started kissing my throat whilst carrying me over to the double bed.

He lay me down on the pillows and lay down on top of me. He balanced his weight out perfectly so that I could feel none of it. He cupped my face with one of his hands and stared at me intensely.

"I'll make them go away." He repeated, "I'll stop them from hurting you." He desperately reattached his lips to mine and parted them with his tongue. His hands raked down my body and desire took over me once again. Without breaking away from me, Edward starting undoing the button on my jeans and then unzipped them. He practically ripped off my jeans. He moved his lips from mine and pulled off his shirt, revealing his perfect body. I bit my bottom lip, which Edward noticed and his eyes darkened. He hovered over me and gave me a sweet, passionate kiss and then crawled down my body, stopping where my shirt ended. He glanced up at me and then turned his attention back to my shirt. He gently pushed the material up, exposing my bare stomach. He leaned down and kissed my stomach reverently and pushed the material higher, placing kisses on the parts of my body that became exposed. He pulled the shirt over my head and discarded it by throwing it across the room. He pressed his lips to mine once again and I started getting more lustful so I pushed my hips into him. He moaned in my mouth and pushed back with his own hips. He released my lips and placed a lingering kiss on my left temple before crouching down to where my panties were. He hooked his thumbs under the sides and pulled them down. Once they were off, he nudged himself in between my legs.

"Edward, what are you- oh!" I moaned as I felt his tongue at my entrance. I gripped onto the sheets as his tongue started darting in and out of my entrance, my moans becoming increasingly loud every time he did it. I couldn't stop the rhythm that my hips were making and I felt the pleasurable knot in my stomach tighten. I knew my release was coming.

"Oh Edward!" I cried. He started getting faster and faster until I couldn't take it anymore and screamed as I came to my release. I felt Edward drink up my juices and felt a little bit embarrassed by it. Once he was done, he hovered back over me, kissing my panting mouth and letting me taste my own arousal. Edward wrapped his arms around the middle of my back and pulled me up so that we were kneeling opposite each other. I placed my hands on his shoulders as he moved his face to the left of my throat and started sucking on the skin there. Moans escaped my mouth freely and I heard a little snap. I felt my bra get removed and Edward's hands roamed around the skin on my fully exposed back. He pulled away from my neck to work on the other side. His hands moved from my back and skimmed across my breasts. I closed my eyes in pleasure and tilted my head to the left so that he had better access to my neck. He growled appreciatively and fastened his arms around my waist, bringing my closer to him. He tilted my head back properly and assaulted my lips with his. My finger trailed from his shoulders down his chest, down his stomach until I reached the top of his jeans. I swiftly unbuckled his belt and he helped me by kicking off his jeans. I pulled his boxers off his legs to reveal his naked body. I licked my lips in anticipation as I drunk him in. I wanted to give him pleasure, like he had given me pleasure. I kissed his lips and started pecking my way downwards when Edward gently pushed me on my back, back on the bed. I looked up at him, confused.

"But I want to give _you _pleasure." I told him. He shook his head.

"No," he whispered, "this is for you." He hovered over me for a moment and then slowly lowered down onto me. I felt his weight press onto me. I lifted my hands so that they were either side of my head. Edward brought his hands up and held mine, interlocking our fingers on the pillows. He positioned himself on top of me and leaned down to my ear.

"I love you." He whispered passionately before he thrust deep into me. I moaned as I felt him inside of me. He pulled out and plunged back in causing pleasure and electric shocks to course through my body. I closed my eyes as he kept pulling out and pushing back in to me, burying himself deeper and deeper within me. Once he got a rhythm going, I raised my hips to meet his. He moaned along with me and tightened his grip on my hands. He pressed his lips to mine as he kept going, not stopping his rhythm. Our moans got louder and louder until I was ready. I felt the familiar knot in my stomach tighten as Edward got faster and harder with his rhythm. I squeezed my eyes shut tighter as I was about to release.

"That's it Bella." Edward encouraged. "Just let go." I didn't have to be told twice as he pushed into me one final time. I gasped as my walls clamped around him. I screamed as my orgasm took over me, causing my body to tremble. I heard Edward gasp as his orgasm took over him too. He quickly released my hands and pulled my body up to his, pressing me tightly against him as we came together. Once we were done, we collapsed onto the bed. Edward looked over at me and wrapped his arms securely around my still trembling form, pulling me up against him. I laid my head on his chest and breathed in heavily, trying to calm myself down. Edward gently took hold of my hand and pressed his lips to mine. He kissed me two more times before kissing my forehead. He opened up my palm and twisted his head so that he could kiss it. He skimmed his nose across my fingers and kissed each one before pressing my hand on his chest where his heart is.

"I love you Bella." He whispered, looking at me lovingly. I smiled and cuddled closer to him.

"I love you too Edward."


	16. You Found Me

Chapter 16: You Found Me

"Edward," I mumbled into his marble chest, "we have to go now."

He groaned and tightened his arms around me, burying his face into the pillows, "No we don't."

I laughed at his reluctance to go to school. I hadn't been in two days and neither had Edward. Alice had informed us that people were starting to get suspicious of me and Edward.

"I think it would be good if we went." I informed him, trying to coax him out of bed. He sighed into the pillows and propped himself up on his elbow, looking down at me.

"Why would it be good?" he asked, searching my face.

"So then we won't have to face the wrath of Alice." He laughed as I said this and dipped his head to my neck, kissing the sensitive spot there.

"I love you." He murmured against my skin. I closed my eyes in pure bliss and a smile crept its way onto my face. I draped my arms around his neck and pulled him on top of me. He lifted his head up and I kissed his lips.

"How long until your room is clean?" I mumbled in between kisses.

"_Our _room should be ready by tonight. Esme offered to clean it up for us today."

"After your little tantrum." I giggled. He growled playfully and nipped at my neck. I glanced at the clock next to the bed and sighed; we had twenty minutes until school.

"Edward." I sighed. I looked at him pointedly in the eye, but he simply shook his head and kissed my lips. I groaned in frustration. I knew that he wasn't going to let me go to school, so I would have to persuade him.

My hands started roaming around Edward's body. I heard him moan in delight and I started purring. Edward leaned down and kissed my forehead, purring along with me. He thought that I had given in on going to school and loosened his hold on me. As soon as that happened, I sneakily pushed Edward off me and sprinted into Alice's room, grabbing some of the bed sheets with me to cover myself up.

"Bella!" Edward shouted. I ran down the corridor, hoping that I would get to Alice's room before Edward could catch me. I heard his feet running behind me and I pushed myself faster.

Suddenly, a door to my left flew open. I glanced through it quickly and saw Alice's small figure.

"Quick Bella! In here!" she called. I swiftly turned to my left and darted into her room. I glimpsed at the door and saw Edward running towards me before Alice slammed her door shut, locking it. After a few seconds, I heard Edward pounding on the door.

"Alice! Open this door right now!" he snarled. I clung tighter to the bed sheets and giggled slightly. Alice turned to me and smirked evilly.

"Sorry Edward." She called, "I need to get Bella ready for school." I beamed at Alice gratefully.

"Alice, if you don't open this door right now I swear I'll burn all of your clothes." Edward threatened through the door. Alice's eyes flashed to her wardrobe worriedly for a second before her face went completely blank. I knew she was having one of her visions so I waited patiently whilst looking around her room.

Nearly everything was pink apart from the king sized bed that had been pushed up against the wall as it was blue. On the far side of the room was a huge vanity set covered with make-up and hair appliances. I could only imagine how Jasper must feel about this as this was probably his room too. I shuddered.

I was pulled out of my gazing as Alice shook her head, coming out of her vision.

"Nice try brother." Alice giggled.

"Alice-" Edward started.

"Why don't _you_ get ready for school whilst I get Bella ready?" Alice suggested. I heard Edward mutter something from behind the door but heard his retreating footsteps. Alice stuck her tongue out at the door which caused me to laugh.

"Ok Bella. Go and take a quick shower and I'll do the rest." She ordered.

"Yes ma'am." I saluted and marched myself into her bathroom. I dropped the bed sheets and turned the warm water on. I stepped into the shower and moaned slightly as the heat came into contact with my cold skin. Remembering that Alice was waiting for me, I shook out of my daze and quickly shampooed my hair and washed my body with soap. Once I was done, I shut off the water, wrapped a towel around my body and walked back into Alice's room. She immediately pushed me to her vanity set and blow dried my hair. When my hair was completely dry, Alice brought out a pair of curling tongs. She took pieces of my hair and curled them. After that, she applied light, natural looking make-up on me; faint pink lip gloss, a bit of black mascara with eyeliner and a small hint of smoky eye shadow.

"Now to put on your clothes!" Alice squealed. I chuckled lightly at her as she darted into her wardrobe. After a few seconds, she emerged with a three quarter length black blouse and light blue skinny jeans accompanied with black ballet flats. I noticed that we bought these when we went shopping. I quickly put the clothes on before appraising myself in the mirror. I had to admit it; I looked _good_. I particularly liked how my hair cascaded down my back in soft curls. The woman in my reflection smiled. I spun around and bounded over to Alice, hugging her.

"Thank you!" I cried happily. She giggled in response and hugged me back.

"I think you might need to go now. I can hear Edward pacing outside the door." She giggled again. I smiled again and gave her one last squeeze before darting to the door. I swiftly turned the door knob and was greeted by the sight of Edward pacing, just as Alice had said. He stopped abruptly and turned around to face me. His eyes widened and his jaw dropped. I subtly scanned his clothing; a blue button up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, dark blue jeans with black converse shoes. He noticed my oogling and I smiled shyly at him, casting my eyes down to the floor. A cool finger was placed under my chin and tilted my face upwards. I was met with Edward's scorching eyes.

"You look beautiful." He whispered to me. His sweet breath blew across my face and without thinking, I leaned in and kissed his lips.

"Oi!" Emmett shouted. Edward and I broke apart, but he kept his arms wrapped firmly around me. We both turned to see a smug looking Emmett "Enough with the love already! Let's move!" I looked down in embarrassment whilst Edward growled at Emmett. "Ooh, scary!" Emmett laughed and bounded back downstairs. After a few seconds I heard a smack, followed by Emmett's cry, "Rosie! What was that for?"

"Moron." I heard Rosalie mutter and me and Edward sniggered. Edward gave me another kiss and then led me down the stairs. We were soon followed by Alice and Jasper, to which then Emmett and Rosalie emerged from the living room, Emmett rubbing the back of his head. We had decided that Edward and I would take his Volvo whilst the others would go in Emmett's Jeep, but only because Edward refused to be separated from me. Edward grabbed his jacket and Rosalie lent me a black slender coat to which I was grateful for. All six of us ventured into the garage and I also noticed a Black Mercedes and a red Ferrari. Edward opened the passenger door of his Volvo.

"Thank you." I said as I climbed into the car. He shut the door once I was seated and ran around to the driver's side. He hopped in and started the car, the Jeep trailing behind us. Once we were on the main road, Edward grabbed hold of my hand and rubbed soothing circles into it.

"Are you alright?" he asked me.

"Yeah." I replied, gazing out of the window. All too soon, we pulled up at Forks High School where all eyes were on us, literally. I unbuckled my seatbelt when Edward opened my door for me, holding out his hand. I smiled at him and took his hand as he helped me out of the car. I looked around me and saw the boys looking lustfully towards me and I cowered into Edward's chest.

"I don't like the way they are looking at me." I whispered to Edward. He swiftly kissed my cheek.

"Don't worry, that's why I- OH DAMN IT!" Edward shouted. I looked up at him, alarmed.

"What is it?" I asked frantically.

"I was supposed to get transferred into all your classes! But I forgot to ask them!" he growled. He let go of my hand and pinched the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb.

"It'll be ok Edward." Alice soothed, coming up to us with Jasper close behind her. I saw Emmett and Rosalie wander into the school.

"No it won't!" he snarled, "All these _disgusting _humans will be after her and I will have none of it. Come on Bella, we're going home." He grabbed my hand and started tugging me back to the Volvo.

"Wait!" Alice pleaded, stopping in front of Edward, gripping onto Jasper's hand. "Calm down and listen. Bella will be ok for today. Just go to the office after school and tell them." Edward huffed in response to her.

"It still doesn't change the fact that these imbeciles will try to take away what is mine." Edward stated, glancing back at me.

"Then you can beat them to a pulp after school." Jasper replied, smirking at Edward. Edward sighed but squeezed my hand a bit tighter.

"Please Edward, trust me; it will be ok." Alice whispered, looking into Edward's eyes. After a few minutes of silence, Edward spoke.

"Fine." He snapped. A brilliant smile lit up Alice's features and she danced into the school with a chuckling Jasper. Edward turned to me and cradled my face in between his hands.

"Bella, listen to me. I will walk you to all of your classes and I will watch you through the minds of others to make sure that you are ok. When your class finishes, wait for me to come and get you. Ok darling?" he asked, stroking my right cheek with his hand.

"Ok." I agreed. He nodded his head and wrapped an arm around my waist. We walked into the school together as the bell went, the rain starting to drizzle through the clouds. Edward walked me through the corridors as everyone was staring at us; wide-eyed and open-mouthed. I shook my head and carried on to English with Edward.

Once we reached the classroom, I turned to face Edward ready for a quick goodbye.

So I was caught off guard when he suddenly crashed his lips to mine. My body took over then and I wrapped my arms around his neck. I felt his hands trail up and down the sides of my ribcage and butterflies erupted within my stomach. I could hear the other students whispering and gawking as they walked past us but at that moment I simply didn't care. All too soon, Edward pulled away from the kiss, pressing his forehead against mine.

"I think that was enough to convince them that you're mine." Edward chuckled, but I also heard the seriousness in his voice. "Remember to wait for me." He told me sternly. I nodded my head and entered the classroom in a daze.

xoxox

Just like he said, Edward walked me from class to class until lunch time. I was glad that no boys approached me to ask me out, but after Edward's display with Mike a few days ago, I'm not really surprised. Mr. Haywood had finished his lecture on History and allowed us to go to lunch a little earlier. I still had to wait for Edward to pick me up so when he dismissed us, I sat on my desk whilst the humans scrambled out of the door, wanting to get to the cafeteria first. I didn't have anything to pack away apart from my pen which went in my pocket. I sighed and looked at the clock, counting down until I saw my Edward again.

I drummed my fingers against the wooden desk and pursed my lips. The time seemed to go on forever when I wasn't with Edward or any other member of the Cullens. I sighed again, wishing that the bell would hurry up. Suddenly, I heard the door open and someone walked in. I looked up and saw none other than Mike Newton. Now this I was surprised at.

"Bella." He murmured, looking down.

"Mike." I greeted him with a nod. He stood there awkwardly for a moment until his eyes flashed to mine.

"What are you doing here?" he questioned.

"I could ask you the same thing." I replied with a smirk. I saw his lips twitch slightly into a smile.

"I was supposed to come here for a detention with Mr. Haywood." He glanced at the empty teacher's desk, "But he looks like he forgot." He laughed humourlessly. I could tell by his tense posture that he was uncomfortable.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

"I'm breaking the rules, aren't I?" he asked back. I simply stared at him, confusion etched on my face, "Edward's rules."

Realisation sunk in as I remembered Edward's threat; _"__Now, if you so much as think about her again, I will make sure that you suffer a slow and painful death." _

"Oh." Was my only response.

"Yeah." Mike laughed nervously. We both jumped at the sound of the bell echoing through the school. We both laughed at our fright when the door opened again. My eyes snapped to the door; there, in all his glory, was my Edward.

"Edward!" I squealed. I flung myself off the desk and into his waiting arms. He picked me up and spun me around, a perfect smile lighting up his face. Once he set me down he gave me a passionate kiss as if we hadn't seen each other in years; well, it felt like it to me.

Once we pulled apart, Edward noticed Mike standing against the wall, looking at anything but us. I saw Edward's eyes visibly darken and his arms constricted around me. I heard a growl start to build up in his chest and I realised that if I didn't do something, Edward would probably kill Mike. I quickly placed my hand on Edward's chest in a soothing manner. He tore his eyes away from Mike to look down at me.

"He didn't do anything." I told him gently, too low for Mike to hear. Edward glanced at Mike again, then back to me and nodded his head. I silently sighed in relief as Edward pulled me away from the classroom. We headed to the cafeteria with me still caged in Edward's arms. As we entered, the stench of human food wafted through my nose. I wrinkled it in response and Edward laughed.

We paid for our food and travelled over to the Cullen's table. Edward and I sat down next to each other before he smirked and picked me up, placing me on his lap. I caught a few of the girls staring at me in jealously. I just rolled my eyes and curled up closer to Edward's chest. He started ghosting his fingers up and down my spine and placed his other hand on my lap.

"Ugh, get a room!" Emmett's voice boomed from the other side of the cafeteria. I turned my head and stuck my tongue out at him. Emmett had a look of mock shock on his face and put his hand over his heart. I couldn't help but smile at his acting. I placed my head on Edward's shoulder and he tucked me closer to him. Soon after, Emmett and Rosalie joined us.

"I'm hurt Bells. Real hurt." Emmett said. I rolled my eyes at him and he gasped, again in mock shock. "She just did it again!" Emmett gasped. Rosalie rolled her eyes and smacked him on the back of the head. "Ow! Rosie!" Emmett complained, "Will you kiss it better?" he asked her sweetly. She rolled her eyes again until Alice came and whacked him on the same spot that Rosalie had just hit him. Alice sat down with Jasper laughing beside her. I don't think Edward noticed anything as he was too busy staring at me. I looked at him for a moment before giving him a quick kiss. A lazy smile spread on Edward's face.

"Aww." Alice and Rosalie cooed whilst Emmett just made retching noises. I put my forehead against Edward's and gazed into his eyes. Emmett still hadn't stopped his noise making, but then I heard three smacks which shut him up.

Lunch continued in this fashion and soon the bell went. I was glad that me and Edward had Biology next so I eagerly threw my untouched food in the bin and took Edward's hand, dragging him into the Biology room. We were the first ones in there so we sat down at our desk and kissed until we heard more people starting to come in. We pulled apart but Edward held my hand under the table, entwining our fingers. After five minutes, Mr. Banner came in, wheeling an ancient looking T.V. set. The students started to get excited as they realised that they didn't have to do any work.

"Alright, alright. Settle down." Mr. Banner calmed the class. He put on a video about cells and switched off the lights. Five minutes into the film, Edward let go of my hand and put his arm around my waist. Instinctually, I cuddled up to him. After another few minutes, I felt his other hand on my thigh. He started rubbing his hand up and down my thigh, getting higher and higher each time. I looked at him in the dark and saw that he was staring at me intensely. I started leaning towards him and found him doing the same. An electric current was constantly passing between us, pulling me towards him. The charge was getting stronger and stronger the closer I went near him. His lips brushed against mine and he was about to kiss me when Mr. Banner turned the lights back on. We both simultaneously groaned; that couldn't have been the whole lesson, could it? Edward walked me to gym and quickly gave me a lasting kiss.

"I'll make up for Biology tonight in our _clean_ bedroom." He whispered and winked at me. Gym passed in a blur and we were still doing volley ball. The Coach wanted me to join the team because of my dives, but I had to refuse, stating that, "I don't have time."

Once the bell went for the end of school, relief washed over me. Tomorrow, Edward would be in all of my classes. I smiled brightly and virtually skipped out to Edward who was waiting for me outside of the changing rooms. He raised an eyebrow at me.

"What?" I asked, defensively. He shook his head.

"I think Alice is beginning to rub off on you." He smirked coming over to me. I gasped at him and swatted his arm playfully. He simply laughed and kissed my hair. We walked, hand-in-hand, out into the parking lot. "Oh, and I've managed to transfer into all of your classes." He smiled. The rain hadn't cleared up so little droplets splashed onto my clothes. I spotted Alice, Emmett, Jasper and Rosalie by Emmett's monster Jeep, laughing. I started walking over to them but then I froze.

My eyes zeroed on the shadows in the trees. A figure was standing, arms crossed over his broad chest. He looked about twenty two years old. His black shirt clung to his muscles. His blue jeans were washed out and caked in mud. His scruffy brown hair was just how I remembered it. Lastly, I looked into his blood red eyes that shone in the shadows. Once he made eye contact with me, his face twisted into a sick, disturbing smile, venom drooling out of his mouth from the humans here.

"Isabella…" he mouthed. My eyes widened in shock and my breathing turned to gasping.

"Bella?" Edward asked frantically, gripping my shoulders to face him, "What's wrong?" His voice sounded far away and I couldn't concentrate on him. My gaze slowly went back to the other vampire in the shadows. But he wasn't just any vampire.

He was my creator; the one who thought that I was his mate.

I was vaguely aware of Edward shaking me, trying to get me to answer him. My creator smiled at me again. A human walked in between us and when they had passed, my creator had vanished.

My eyes searched frantically into the forest. He can't have just disappeared! Fear gripped at my heart; he knew where I was. My view of the forest was cut off by the rest of the family surrounding me, worry etched into their faces.

"BELLA!" Edward shouted. I shook my head as I was brought back into reality.

"Yes?" I whispered hoarsely. They all stared at me in shock for a moment.

"What happened?" Edward whispered, cupping my face with his hands.

"I-" I looked at each of their faces. They truly cared about me. They had become my family in the three days that I had known them and I would not subject them to be in danger because of me. I would not fail this family as I failed my last family. So I did the only thing I could think of.

I ran.


	17. No More

Chapter 17: No More

I couldn't think as the green trees whizzed past me in a blur. My mind could not comprehend how he found me. I thought I had lost him years ago in the forest; obviously not. Other questions sprung to my mind; _how _did he find me? Why did he come here? But most importantly…what did he want from me?

My feet moved at a blindingly fast rate and I let them carry me to wherever they wanted to go. I had been running for an hour now, and I had managed to lose Edward by darting through the trees. The rain had picked up and was falling down heavily on Forks; this washed away my scent so the Cullens couldn't track me. I was a bit suspicious as I didn't think that Edward would give up that easily.

The image of my creator formed in my mind once again and I shuddered, coming to a sudden halt. I sank to the ground and sobbed, allowing the rain to drench my now muddy clothes. Why was my past coming back? What had I done wrong?

Why was I running away?

I stopped my sobbing and snapped my head up. Why _was _I running away? Shouldn't I be facing this head on like everyone else does? Why was I being such a baby about this? I mean, yeah, my past was horrendous, but shouldn't I be over it by now?

I thought back to the time when I had told the Cullens about my past. They we supportive of me and took pity on me, but I pushed them away.

_Why? _Why did I push them away?

Guilt swelled up in my chest as I realised that all I had been doing was pushing the people I love away from me. I had shut them out of my life; especially Edward. He was my _mate _for God's sake! Shouldn't I be confiding in him to help me sort out my problems?

I scanned over my life since my change. Getting turned, being claimed by two vampires, living in the forest, moving to Forks, meeting Edward, meeting the Cullens, mating with Edward, my breakdown, shopping with Alice, telling Edward about my past…

Since when did I become such a baby?

I shook my head. No, this wasn't me. What happened to the old me? The confident, strong, independent, funny, selfless, kind Bella who lived life to the full? I was the opposite to all of these now. But the one thing that is angering me most of all:

I am selfish.

I am inflicting pain amongst the Cullens by hiding away all of my emotions. I desperately wanted to enjoy my eternity with them. I wanted to let Alice dress me and give me makeovers, I wanted to play games with Emmett, I wanted to discuss History with Jasper, talk with Rosalie, help Esme around the house, share in Carlisle's compassion.

I wanted to love Edward. But I didn't want to _depend _on him.

I raised my head up to the sky and closed my eyes, letting the rain drip onto my face and trail down my neck.

_No more…_ I thought.

No more breakdowns. No more depending on everybody else to make me happy. No more being _weak_.

I was going to bring the old Bella back.

xoxox

I shook as the memories came flooding back once again. I had been repeating my past in my head for about two hours. I knew that Edward would be worried about me, but at the moment, I didn't care. I wanted to do this, and I didn't care how long it took; I was not going back until the old Bella returned.

I _despised_ how everyone from my past affected me. I _hated _how I couldn't move on in my life. It was like I was a living shell, waiting for someone to mention my past so that I can whine and moan about it.

No more.

Flashes of my old family passed through my mind like an old film. I dug my nails into the mud and squeezed my eyes shut tighter, willing my emotions to calm down. I gasped once I finished, but I did it again, and again, and again.

I was sick of myself now, acting all defenceless and, basically, pathetic. My jaw clenched as I ran through the film again.

"_Hold my hand you little bitch."_

"_Say a word to your mommy and you'll regret it."_

"_Say anything and you're dead."_

I felt something snap within me. I let out an ear shattering roar, scaring away the birds that shrieked and flew away. I snarled at everything surrounding me and stood on my two feet at a blinding speed. I breathed in the air, rain dripping from the end of my nose and closed my eyes once more.

This time, when I relived my past, I found that I wasn't shaking. I froze in shock for a moment and tried again. Nothing. I didn't feel anything.

I kept this up for another ten minutes and each time nothing happened, a smile spread across my face. I could feel the confidence boost within me, the happiness radiate throughout my body. I could imagine my creator and didn't flinch. I then imagined myself killing my creator and found that I was relieved.

I was glad Jasper wasn't here; with all these strong emotions coursing through my being he would have a headache by now.

I checked my past once more and found the results to be the same. I was no longer scared, I was no longer fearful. I _wanted _my creator to find me. And I wanted him dead.

I smiled; the old me was back.

"Yeah and I could have done it years ago." I muttered to myself, smacking my forehead. I physically felt the rain die down a bit so it lightly splashed on the floor. Remembering that I had to go back to the Cullens- to tell them _everything_…and maybe play Emmett at _Call of Duty_- I looked down at myself and saw that I was caked in mud and that my clothes were soaked through. I frowned, making a mental note to apologise to Alice.

With my new found confidence, I turned around and sped in the direction from which I came. I couldn't keep the smile off my face as I ran home, ready to explain everything to the Cullens…my family. If possible, my smile got even bigger.

As I was thinking about my future life, something crashed into the left side of me, knocking me off course. I flew fifty feet in the air until my body slid onto the ground. Without a moment's hesitation, I flipped off my back and crouched into my defensive position, a growl escaping my clenched teeth. My eyes scoured the forest for the threat until I saw something emerging out of the shadows.

A huge, grey wolf stalked out of the trees. Its teeth were bared at me, its claws digging into the dirt. Its ears pressed against its skull as it spotted me and an vicious snarl echoed throughout the forest.

"That's not very nice." I scolded the wolf, my voice dripping with sarcasm. It responded with a deep growl and lowered itself onto the ground, ready to attack. It hadn't even gotten into its proper position before it charged towards me.

A rush of adrenalin passed through me and venom filled my mouth. A second later, I lunged for the wolf, jumping on its back and wrapping my arms around its neck. The beast tried to snap at me with its jaws and I narrowly missed them each time. I pulled on its neck and lifted it backwards so that it was on its hind legs. I pulled again and the wolf fell backwards. I quickly darted off its back as it hit the ground.

This only made it angrier.

The wolf roared with hatred and lunged for me again. I side-stepped him and it ran past me. Realising its mistake, it dug its claws into the earth and spun around, its crazy eyes locking on mine. I was totally unprepared for what it did next. The wolf pounced high in the air and landed on me, crushing me to the ground. It tried to claw and bite at my throat. It swiped down its big paw and I moved slightly so it ripped my top. I spat in the wolf's eye so that it was temporarily blinded. It pawed at its eye and I took the opportunity to kick it in its chest, causing it to fly into the trees. I heard the snaps and crashes as the wolf landed somewhere in the shadows.

I intended to make my escape when I heard the thudding of paws heading in my direction.

"Oh, crap!" I groaned. There was no use in running now. Another four wolves came crashing into the field, their nostrils flaring. There was a midnight black one, a lighter grey wolf, a chocolate brown wolf and a russet wolf. Now that I looked at them closely, they were rather beautiful.

They all snarled in union and crouched, snarling and growling at me. I looked into each of their eyes; the same warm brown colour. I stopped at the russet one and noticed a look of confusion on his face. I shrugged it off and got ready to attack. The russet one then stopped its noise making and lifted its head, its eyes searching mine. The rest of the wolves looked puzzled at their friend and looked like they were having conversations with each other. I noticed the wolf from earlier limp its way into the pack, a gash on the left of its ribcage. All the wolves now looked at me in confusion and slight astonishment, but still had the undertone of hatred and anger.

_What are they waiting for? _I thought.

The russet one looked to its pack and then back at me. It shook its head and then ran off into the trees. The other wolves whined but the black one gave them a look which shut them up. A boy returned from the place that the wolf had just run to. He had black shaggy hair and looked to be easily over six foot, maybe closer to seven. He had muscle, but not as much as Emmett and had his six pack on display. He was wearing a pair of beige Khaki shorts without any shoes. He slowly came towards me when the wind wafted their smell over to me. I wrinkled my nose in disgust. Ugh, they smelled _revolting_! Their scent burned my nose badly and I came out of my crouch and took a step back to get some clean air.

"Why did you come here blood sucker?" the boy asked.

"What did you call me?" I asked incredulously.

"A blood sucker." He sneered. The other wolves barked in agreement and I snarled at them.

"Don't call me that!" I snapped.

"Yeah yeah, whatever." The kid snorted. "Listen leech. You'd better back off of our territory now before we rip you to shreds."

"Your territory?" I scoffed.

"Yes, _our _territory. You've crossed the boundary line." He accused.

"What boundary line?" I asked. I was staring to get frustrated.

"Well, I assume by your golden eyes that you are with the Cullens, yes?"

"Yeah but-"

"Well therefore you must know all about the treaty." He stated.

"What treaty?" I asked exasperated. His eyes widened in shock.

"You mean you don't know?" he gasped.

"Know what? Look, I came here to think and I was on my way back when _that_-" I pointed at the dark grey wolf"attacked me!" All eyes went to the grey wolf and then back to me.

"So they haven't told you? Figures." He mumbled.

"What haven't they told me?" the boy looked up at me.

"About the Quileute tribe."

"What's the Quileute tribe?" I was curious. A smirk spread across his face.

"I'll let them tell you."

"Can I go now?" I huffed; I wanted to get back home. The boy glanced at the black wolf and nodded his head.

"Fine, considering you didn't know. But if we find you on our land again, we won't hesitate to kill you." He spoke.

I nodded my head in agreement and started heading back home.

"Oh!" I turned back around to face him, "What's your name?" he narrowed his eyes at me.

"Jacob Black."

"Well then, I'll call you Jacob and you can call me Bella." I smiled. I saw Jacob's lips twitching as he chuckled.

"See ya Bella."

"Adios Jacob." I giggled and sprinted fully into the forest. I had all intentions of going back to the Cullens house, but then I remembered my little cottage. I hadn't been there in so long.

After tracing my footsteps back to Forks, I headed towards my cabin. My clothes were torn and muddy, slightly covered in blood, so I thought it was best to stick to the trees. As soon as I spotted my cabin, I squealed and leapt in through the window. The musty smell of pine filled my nose once again and I relished the smell. I decided to take a quick shower and let the hot water run through my hair, washing away all traces of mud and blood. After that, I quickly wrapped a towel around myself and washed my clothes in the bath tub, again. I knew I needed to fix the clothes, but it was physically hurting my chest to be away from Edward so I just flung them on as they were and darted back out of the window into the forest. My feet barely touched the ground as I flew past the trees and shrubs.

I saw the grand white house come into view, but I didn't stop for anything as I bolted into the house. I slammed open the door and I saw the Cullens all gathered in the living room. They seemed to be having some sort of argument as glass was smashed on the floor and I noticed dents in the walls in the shape of fists. Growls, that were emitting from everyone, suddenly ceased. Edward, who had been currently pacing the floor, stopped and stared at me.

"Bella!" he gasped. Before I knew what was happening, I was shoved against the wall and felt Edward's soft lips on mine. My fingers instantly ran through his bronze hair as his fingers traced my face. As soon as Edward's lips released mine, all hell broke loose.

"Where were you?"

"How could you do that?"

"Do you know how worried I was?"

"I couldn't see you in my visions!"

"Hey, I can explain-" I tried to tell them.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"Guys." I whispered.

"Thank goodness you're alright!"

"Guys." I tried again, a little bit louder.

"What were you thinking?"

"GUYS!" I shouted. They all stopped to stare at me in shock and curiosity.

"Thank you." I breathed. "Now, I want to explain what happened. In the parking lot, I saw my creator in the trees-"

"WHAT?" Edward roared but I put my finger to his lips.

"Let me explain." I pleaded. He nodded his head so I continued. "I wandered around for a bit until I came across the wolves." Everyone gasped but remained silent. "So they warned me about the treaty and I understand now. I quickly went to my cabin to get cleaned and I came back here. But that's not the best part." I whispered at the end. They all looked at me in confusion. "I got over my past!" I squealed in delight. It took them a moment to process the information but when they did, brilliant smiles broke out on their faces, the brightest being Edward.

"That's fantastic news, baby!" he rejoiced, wrapping his arms around me and spinning me in the air. I giggled the whole time.

"So, what does this mean?" Emmett asked.

"It means, Emmie Bear, that me and you are going to be pulling pranks at school from now on." An evil smirk crossed Emmett's face and he rubbed his hands together.

"Excellent idea Bellsie." I laughed at my new nickname. The family started talking excitedly about my new attitude. Edward kissed my neck.

"I'm so happy for you, love." Edward whispered, nuzzling his face in my hair.

"Me too." I whispered. I faced Edward and rubbed my nose against him, placing both hands on his chest. "And now, Mr. Cullen, I believe we have some unfinished business to attend to in our _clean _room." I purred seductively. Edward caught on quickly as a mischievous smile spread across his face. He scooped me up in his arms and whizzed us upstairs, kissing my lips the entire way. He entered our bedroom and kicked the door behind him, locking it in the process.


	18. The Denali's

Chapter 18: The Denali's

"They'll be here in two minutes." Alice informed us with a far away look in her eyes. Edward was stood in front of me; he still hated the idea of the Denali's having an unmated male with them. And what was even worse? They were staying for two weeks! I wrapped my arms around his torso from behind and rested my head on his shoulder.

"I won't let him get near you." Edward swore. I rubbed soothing circles on his back. I looked down and used my other hand to stroke Edward's shirt that was on me. It was swamped with his scent and I couldn't stop inhaling his glorious scent. I swear I was addicted to it.

I was kind of nervous about this meeting. I wanted to give a good first impression as Edward had told me that the Denali's were practically family. I was also worried about Tanya. Jasper had informed me that she had an… infatuation with him and I didn't like it.

I didn't like it _at all_.

The sound of tyres crunching on gravel reached our ears and Edward and myself tensed up. I noticed that Carlisle was in front of Esme, Emmett was protecting Rosalie and Jasper was stood in front of Alice. Everybody was silent as we heard the noise get louder and louder. Two engines purred stealthily to us. Edward was currently blocking my view of the door so when the engines cut out, I was immediately nervous. I heard six car doors slam and five pairs of feet walking across the gravel and up the porch steps. Three raps sounded on the door. Carlisle moved to the door with a warm smile on his face.

"Ah, Eleazar! My old friend! It's been too long!" Carlisle greeted.

"Indeed it has Carlisle." A deep voice responded.

"Carmen, how wonderful it is to see you!" I heard a woman laugh.

"You too Carlisle." She responded. I heard Eleazer and Carmen enter the house, being greeted by the rest of the family. Edward shifted his position so that all I could see was his back. No one had noticed me yet, but I think Edward wanted to keep it that way so I didn't say anything.

"Tanya, Irina, Kate!" Carlisle called.

"Hello Carlisle." I heard three females giggle. I suddenly heard someone pick up their speed and stilettos clicked against the floor.

"Eddie!" One of the female's squealed. A strong force hit Edward and he stumbled back into me. Because of this, I got pushed onto the floor.

"Oof!" I huffed as I made contact with the floor. I remember that when I was human, I used to be a total klutz. The floor and I had a relationship with each other. _How have you been my old friend?_

I looked up and saw a strawberry blonde wrapping her arms around MY Edward. Her face was round and beautiful with plump lips and golden eyes. Her body was curvy but slim. She practically had nothing on! All she wore was a tight pink dress which ended mid-thigh, showing off her curves. I couldn't stop glaring at her arms draped around my Edward.

"Hey Eddie." She giggled in her nasally voice, "How have you been?" she purred stroking his arms seductively. Jealousy bubbled within me.

"Tanya! Get off me!" Edward growled. She immediately stepped away and pouted.

"But Eddie-"

"You could have hurt Bella!" he cut in. Edward walked over to me and held out his hand. I took it gratefully and he pulled me up, wrapping into a tight embrace.

"Are you alright." He asked softly.

"Yeah." I replied and smiled up at him. He smiled back and kissed my cheek. I heard a cough and I turned to glare at _Tanya_ for spoiling our moment.

"Who's this Eddie?" she smiled sweetly at me. I simply glared back.

"Don't call me Eddie." Edward snapped.

"Oh. Yes Edward, who is this?" Carmen asked. She had lovely brunette hair, a bit lighter than my own. She had a nice figure and reminded me a lot like Esme. I saw Eleazar, Kate and Irina staring at me curiously.

"Everyone." Edward pulled away from our embrace to wrap an arm around my shoulders, "This is Bella. She's my mate." He looked down at me lovingly.

"Well done Edward." Eleazar praised. The whole room was filled with congratulations. I took a glance at Tanya and saw that she was glaring murderously at me. I couldn't help but feel smug so I winked at her whilst wrapping my arms tightly around him. She bared her teeth at me and I chuckled.

"What's wrong Tanya?" I asked sweetly.

"Nothing _Bella_." She spat my name as if it was a disease. I rolled my eyes at her. Suddenly, the congratulations stopped as we heard another set of feet running towards us. Another figure burst in the room.

"Sorry I'm late." He spoke. We all turned to him and I felt Edward tense. The vampire looked about five foot eleven, smaller than my Edward, and looked about twenty. He had bright blonde cropped hair and had muscle, but less muscle than my Edward. His orange eyes instantly snapped to me. Wait, _orange_?

"Who's this?" he asked, smirking at me. Edward growled extremely loud and placed himself in front of me, blocking the vampire's view of me.

"She's MY mate." Edward spat at him. I could see the new vampire trying to look around Edward to stare at me. I cowered behind his back.

"This is Peter." Tanya introduced, smirking at me.

"Hey." He smiled at everyone, but I could still see him trying to look at me. "So, does the pretty girl have a name?" he asked nodding his head at me. Edward snapped his jaws at Peter and I saw Peter flinch.

"It doesn't concern _you_." Edward snarled. I saw worry on Peter's face, but he instantly replaced it with a smirk.

"Her name is _Bella_." Tanya sneered. Edward turned to glare at Tanya and she winked at him. She_ winked_! That bitch! How dare she try and flirt with MY mate! This time, _I _bared my teeth at _her_.

"Stop that." I snapped at her. She turned to smile at me.

"Do what?" she asked innocently.

"Flirt with my Edward." I growled. She snorted in response.

"He's only doing it out of pity." I heard her mumble. A snarl ripped out of my throat.

"Would he let me wear his shirt if he took pity on me?" I asked nicely, tugging at the hem of Edward's shirt that I was wearing. I swear her eyes turned red. The tension in the room got so thick that you could cut it with a knife, and it didn't help that Edward and Peter were sizing each other up. I saw Jasper and looked apologetically at him; the emotions in the room must be driving him _insane. _Although, it would be funny to see Jasper bitch slap Tanya. I somehow managed to stop the smile from creeping onto my face.

"Why don't we all move into the living room to catch up and get acquainted?" Carlisle suggested, glancing at Peter. I caught Carlisle's eye.

"Thank you." I mouthed to him. He smiled at me in response and proceeded to moving everyone into the living room. I stood rigidly, not taking my eyes off Tanya as she glided into the living room with her head held high. I also noticed how Peter banged Edward's shoulder as he walked by. Edward responded by shoving Peter into the living room. It was just me and Edward standing there.

"Why didn't you do anything about Tanya?" I asked. He chuckled and came over to me, wrapping his arms around me from behind and kissing my neck. He skimmed his nose up the side of my neck, across my jaw and up to my ear.

"Sorry, love." He chuckled, "But I love it when you're angry. You look…_ incredibly sexy_." He growled and nipped my earlobe. I managed to suppress the moan in case anyone was listening. I swivelled around in his arms and embraced him, burying my face in his chest.

"Do we have to go in?" I sighed. All I wanted to do was be with Edward.

"Yes." He sighed back, almost as if he was thinking the same thing as me.

"But Tanya and Peter…" I trailed off, shaking my head. I felt Edward's arms tighten around me.

"I'll protect you." Edward promised.

"I'm counting on it." I mumbled and heard Edward's musical laugh. He pulled my chin up and gave me a passionate kiss, filled with love and affection.

"Let's get this over with." I muttered, taking his hand. He squeezed it in reassurance and led me into the living room.

_What a fun two weeks this will be…_not!


	19. New Discoveries

Chapter 19: New Discoveries

As soon as we entered the living room, all eyes turned to us. Edward squeezed my hand tighter, sensing my edginess. Looking around the room I saw that there were only two seats left; one next to Peter and one next to Tanya. I internally groaned; there was no way that Edward would let me sit next to Peter. At this realisation, Tanya suddenly perked up.

"Hey Eddie, I saved you a seat." She grinned. I clenched my teeth together and Edward rubbed soothing circles on my hand. He started heading over to Tanya, but his grip on my hand tightened. He reluctantly led me over to Tanya, who looked confused. He glanced at me for a moment, an apologetic look in his eyes, before slowly sitting down next to Tanya. Tanya flashed a brilliant smile and started shuffling towards Edward when he suddenly pulled me down on top of him so I was placed on his lap. I smiled at him and he smiled back and kissed my nose. I took the opportunity to snuggle close into Edward's chest.

"Hmph." Tanya huffed, slouching back on to the cushions. I was immensely happy at that moment, but it soon washed away when I got a spine tingling feeling that someone was watching me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Peter looking at me with a calculating expression. I squeezed my eyes shut and huddled further into Edward. Edward noticed my movements and gave me a questioning glance. I quickly darted my eyes to Peter and back. Edward followed my movement and I saw his jaw clench as he looked at Peter. _Talk about if looks could kill…_

I placed my hand on Edward's cheek and he visibly relaxed, but I could still see the hatred in his eyes. He placed his hand over mine, stroking his thumb over my fingers whilst keeping his glare fixed on Peter.

"So, Eleazer, how have you been?" Esme asked politely.

"I've been very well thank you Esme." Eleazer replied with a warm smile. She nodded her head and silence took over once more. I started getting irritated with the silence so I plucked on the hem of Edward's shirt that was on me.

"So _Bella_." Peter purred. Edward's eyes immediately darkened, making him look like a true vampire. I dropped my hand from his face in fear, "How did you come by the _Cullens_?" I flinched at his harsh tone.

"You have no right to talk to her." Edward spat, his hands curling into fists.

"I was only asking her a question." Peter responded coolly. I cleared my throat, intending to answer Peter's question, even if I didn't really want to.

"Well…" I trailed, twisting my body to face Peter. I was about to make eye contact with him when Edward abruptly grabbed my chin and snapped my face to his.

"Don't look at him." Edward demanded in a dangerous voice. He touched his forehead to mine, letting go of my chin and wrapping his arms more firmly around me, "Don't." I sighed and nodded, resting my head on Edward's shoulder. He kissed my forehead and put his head on top of mine.

"Err, so Bella." Carmen cut in, trying to calm to situation, "How were you changed?" The Cullen's eyes all turned to me, worry and concern written on their faces. Edward rubbed my back soothingly and I rolled my eyes; didn't they remember that I had gotten over it?

Without a moment's hesitation, I dived into my past once again. As I told my story, I was well aware of Carmen, Kate and Irina's cries and I could have sworn I heard a sniffle or two from Tanya. Eleazer and Peter cast their eyes downward, showing respect and sympathy for me throughout the story. When I had finished, no one could speak through their crying and wailing so I relaxed into Edward to give them time to compose themselves.

"B-Bella." Kate stuttered, "I-I'm so s-s-sorry!" Irina nodded in agreement.

"What for?" I asked.

"For w-what h-happened to you." By the time she had finished I was shaking my head.

"There's nothing to be sorry for." She smiled gratefully at me, but I could still see the sadness in her eyes. I looked around at everyone else and noticed that Eleazer had a calculating expression n his face.

"Interesting." He murmured.

"What is it?" Carlisle asked; his thirst for knowledge never falters.

"Well, it seems young Bella here has a power." My eyes widened.

"What?" I gasped. I looked around and saw that everyone was just as shocked as me. "What power?"

"I'm not one hundred percent sure but I believe you are a shield." A shield? What did that mean?

"Can you elaborate on that?" Edward pressed.

"I can't seem to get a good read on her. It's as if there's a wall blocking me from her mind. Maybe that's why you can't read her mind Edward?" Eleazer studied me for a moment more before a satisfied smile spread across his face, "Definitely a shield."

I stared at him in wonder. A shield; it wasn't exactly the greatest gift, but it was a gift none the less. Tanya snorted.

"Oh great, a shield. It's nothing compared to being a mind reader; right Eddie?" she turned to Edward but before she could fully look at him I snapped my jaws at her, causing her to flinch.

"Tanya, that's enough." Eleazer firmly told Tanya. She sulked back into the cushions, folding her arms across her chest and jutting out her bottom lip; pathetic.

"I think it's amazing that she's a shield." Peter purred. I immediately felt Edward tense and a growl rumbled from deep within his chest.

"Thank you, Peter." I answered in a monotone voice. Edward glared at me and I shrunk back; I wasn't supposed to talk to him.

"It's ok Bella, I like complementing you. In fact I could complement you on some other things too." Peter suggested and I felt his eyes trail down my body.

"Stop looking at her before I gouge your eyes out boy." Edward snarled. I really didn't want this to end up in a fight so I wrapped my arms around Edward's neck and kissed him passionately on the lips, to which he eagerly responded. Two growls sounded throughout the room; no doubt from Peter and Tanya.

Soon after, the whole room was buzzing with conversation. Carlisle, Eleazer and Jasper were discussing the possibilities of my power, Esme and Carmen were comparing house decorations and furniture from magazines, Alice was with Irina and Kate, flipping through magazines, Emmett and Rosalie were making gooey-eyes at each other whilst me and Edward were curled up together, whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears. Tanya and Peter were glaring at us; what a surprise! I sighed.

"What's wrong love?" Edward asked, skimming his lips across my temple.

"I just wish that Tanya and _him _would leave us alone." Edward had made it clear earlier that I wasn't even allowed to usher _his _name. I heard Edward sigh.

"Hmm." Edward thought. He started trailing sweet kisses down the side of my face. "Well, I would be more than willing to take your mind off things." He suggested.

"How?" I asked, feigning innocence. Edward smirked as his hand rubbed circles my thigh. He started getting higher and higher and was staring to trail into the inside of my thigh. His lips folded over mine in a lustful kiss and his tongue passed between my lips, massaging my tongue with his. He reluctantly pulled away, panting.

"Damn these guests for being here." He growled.

"Why do you say that?" I questioned, still trying to catch my breath.

"If they weren't here then I could take you to our room right now." Edward replied, nibbling my ear.

"Then why don't you?" I giggled. Edward was about to answer when someone interrupted.

"Because she'd rather sleep with me." Silence flowed through the room as all eyes turned to Peter. He had a broad smile on his face as he looked at Edward. I stole a glance at him too and immediately looked away; he was the picture of terror.

His now black eyes sunk into his head and bored holes in Peter's face. His lips were curled over his venom coated teeth, making all his features more dark and defined. A horrifying snarl ripped out of his throat.

"What. Did. You. Just. Say?" Edward seethed.

"You heard me." Peter answered confidently. Uh-oh.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?" Edward roared. I covered my ears with my hands. I looked around and saw the furniture shake because he was so loud. I saw Peter's grin falter.

"Well…urm-" I managed to scramble off Edward as he stood up in an instant. He crouched down defensively in front of me.

"HOW DARE YOU, BOY!" Edward screamed in fury. I could see that Edward was past reason and was going to lunge for Peter. I was about to intervene when I remembered something vitally important;

_75% of fights in the vampire world are males fighting over a female. And if you see one of these fights, you must _never_ get involved._

I let out a shriek as I saw Edward tense up, ready to strike. But when he heard me, his head whipped around to face me. Sensing my distress, he flew over to me and wrapped me up in a loving embrace, kissing my face. Once he was done, he turned blindingly fast to face Peter, once again blocking me from his sight.

"Outside. Now." Edward ordered, his voice deadly quiet.

"Edward-"

"No Esme." Edward cut her off. "_Peter_-" he spat the name with so much hatred- "and I need to have a little chat. Don't we?" He directed his gaze towards Peter. Peter gulped and nodded, making his way to the front door. Edward gave me one rough kiss on my lips.

"I love you." He murmured, kissing me again. "Never forget that."

"I won't." I whispered back and kissed him.

"I'll be back soon. Wait here for me." Edward kissed my forehead.

"Always." He smiled at my response and kissed me one more time before stalking to the door, all signs of happiness gone.

"Oh and Tanya." Edward stopped but didn't turn around. "If you ever think about my Bella like that again, I will not hesitate to kill you as well." Tanya trembled slightly but nodded her head. Edward didn't wait as he bolted through the door and slammed it shut, causing cracks to form on the frame.

_Please don't do anything stupid! _I prayed as I heard the retreating footsteps of my Edward and _him_.


	20. She's Mine

Chapter 20: She's Mine

**EPOV:**

As soon as the front door of the house slammed shut, I ran full speed into the trees. All I saw was red as I hunted the little worm that called himself a man. He didn't deserve to live after what he had just done.

And I would make sure that he wouldn't live.

The fool was thinking about what he and MY Bella would get up to if they were mated. I so desperately wanted to kill him as soon as I first saw him, but I tried to reign in my control for the sakes of my family and the Denalis.

But he had gone over the line.

The positions he was imagining them in were both disturbing and revolting; but if it were me in his place then they became very appealing. I had not had sex with my Bella since last night, and I needed to be inside of her again; tonight. I knew that we had guests that would be able to hear our every moan, but I couldn't really give a fuck now. Bella was my mate and I was going to do what I liked with her. One of the many reasons that I loved Bella was because when she got over her past- I still shudder as I recall it- she became more confident and independent. I thought that this was going to be a problem at first as she may try and be defiant with me; not that it mattered because I would simply tie her to the bed until she became submissive to be. But surprisingly, when she was with me, she _was _submissive. She understood that she was mine and didn't try to change that.

And nothing would change that. Ever.

I was brought out of my musings when I saw the worm stop in the middle of the clearing just East of my family's house. I allowed my instincts to take over and didn't stop as I slammed into him, pinning him to the ground. I felt him struggle underneath me and I cackled maliciously.

"Do you think you can wiggle free?" I growled at him. I pulled his wrists, which I had hold of behind his back, and twisted them to face the wrong way. The worm yelled in pain as his legs flailed around trying to get me off him; pathetic.

"P-Please!" the coward begged.

"Please what?" I spat, "Please don't hurt me? Please let me go? Please forgive me for thinking about your mate even though you could hear me?" I had no intention of doing any of those. Annoyed at his constant yelping, I punched him hard in the shoulder and he screamed.

"I didn't m-mean it." He whimpered. I growled louder and pushed him further into the dirt. Of course he meant it and I didn't need Jasper's power to see the way he was looking at my love. It was only the thoughts of my pleading family and the actions of my Bella that stopped me from tearing his head from his shoulders.

But my family and my Bella weren't here now, were they? I grinned evilly at the thought. I pulled away from him but swiftly tore off both of his legs so that he couldn't run. I internally rejoiced as I saw his features distort in agony and pain. He brought this upon himself. I picked up his legs and shoved them under a tree so that he couldn't move them. I stalked back over to the boy and roughly grabbed his throat, bringing him up to my level. His hands tried to claw at mine, but he was weak. I was taller than him when he had legs so he dangled from my grip. I squeezed my hand around his neck, blocking his airways. I could crush his wind pipe right now, but I decided to have a little fun with him first.

With a terrifying roar I flung the worm into the trees, hearing him hit every one. I ran over to where he landed and just saw a crying mess. He was hunched over, trying to stop the pain that was now going through his body.

"Peter." I addressed darkly. The boy whimpered but looked up to meet my eyes. _That's probably the bravest thing he's ever done._ I thought sarcastically. I clasped my hands behind my back and started circling him. "How long have you been like this?" I gestured towards him.

"S-Six months." He stuttered. I internally smirked; killing him would be easy as he is so young.

"So, you think you can take MY mate away from me, do you? You think she prefers your company to mine?" Within a flash, I stood behind him and tugged his hair so that his head snapped back, my lips at his ear. "You think she would rather _mate _with you?" I watched as the worm remained motionless and unresponsive. I sighed and swiftly ripped off his arm, discarding it amongst the trees. The boy's screams filled the air once again; I was getting rather tired of it. I drew my fist back and punched him squarely in the jaw, trying to shut him up. Once he was on the ground, I kicked and punched every inch of him. He feebly tried to defend himself with one arm.

"SHE'S MINE!" I roared as I punched him. "I LOVE HER!" I kicked him several times. "SHE LOVES ME!" I tore off his remaining arm, grabbing his throat in a vice grip. "AND NOTHING IS GOING TO CHANGE THAT! DO YOU HEAR ME? NOTHING!" I squeezed once again and I felt his wind pipe crushing between my fingers. He was choking on air so I threw him down onto the ground once again. I stalked over to him and crouched down to his level. His venom was pooling around him. I lifted his head up by his hair again and grabbed his head between my hands again.

"And don't you forget it." I whispered into his ear. I started twisting his head when three pairs of hands grabbed me from behind and pulled me off the worm. My instincts immediately kicked in and I tried to twist out of their grip. I snarled deeply as the offenders' thoughts were a jumble of panic. They dragged me further away from the worm and I twisted and snapped my jaws at them. All three of them, Emmett, Jasper and Eleazer froze in shock for a moment before using more strength to drag me away.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" I roared as I tried to get to the boy again. He needed to be killed. Now.

_Edward, please. Just listen for one minute! _Eleazer begged with his thoughts.

"NO! HE NEEDS TO DIE!" I responded. I heard another pair of footsteps approaching. Carlisle burst through the trees, carrying the worm's legs and arm. My eyes widened as he started trying to heal the boy.

"TRAITOR!" I screamed at him in fury. He turned to face me with apologetic eyes but I bared my teeth at him in response. How could he side with _him_?

_Edward, son. Carmen has worked so hard to make Peter feel comfortable within he family. I understand your reasons as to why you want to kill him and trust me, he will be punished. But think about what it would do to Carmen if you killed her son…_ Carlisle's thoughts made me pause momentarily. It was true that I would feel guilty that I had upset Carmen, but I need to protect my Bella. As long as that _thing_ breathes, she is in danger. Carlisle could see the conflict in my eyes.

_It's only for two weeks Edward. Stay by Bella's side and you should be fine. I promise you that if he tries anything else, I and the rest of the family will stand by you._ I sighed and nodded in agreement. I gently shrugged the hands off me, letting my brothers and Eleazer know that I was in control.

"Very well." I regretted speaking these words. "Two weeks."

"That's all I'm asking." Carlisle nodded. _Thank you._ He added in his head.

"And you." I addressed, glaring at Peter as his wounded eyes met mine. "Stay away from my girl, or I swear I will rip your fucking head off your shoulders and feed it to the wolves. You were lucky tonight." And with that, I dashed back to my Bella.

The need that I had been suppressing down for my Bella hit me with full force. I needed to make love to her right now. I pined for her touch and also needed to touch her. I needed to remind her who she belonged to, which was me. I needed to love her and pleasure her. I needed to mark her as mine.

As I got closer to the house, I could smell my girl's heavenly scent. I drove forward faster as my body started aching to be melted with hers. My body wanted to feel her and hear her moan my name. Just thinking about it made me hard.

I leapt through the front door and saw that everyone was doing their own thing. I saw Tanya smile flirtatiously as I entered but I didn't even look at her. She was so convinced that we were mates but I wasn't ever attracted to her. She was really starting to piss me off now. I had Bella, and I would never look at another woman again.

I heard a musical giggle coming from the kitchen and knew that it was my Bella. Everything about her was perfect. I quickly ran into the kitchen and saw her leaning up against the counter, laughing at some remark that Kate had just made.

Before Bella even knew I was there, I lunged for her and threw her over my shoulder.

"Edward!" she squeaked. I didn't respond as I ran up to our bedroom. When we arrived, the king-sized bed looked _very _inviting. I threw her onto the bed and kicked the door shut and locked it within a second. Then, I jumped on top of my Bella and roughly kissed her on the lips, shoving my tongue down her throat. She immediately responded by wrapping her arms around my neck, winding her fingers in my hair. I grunted as her tongue massaged mine and I ground my lips harder to hers. I pulled away to place a trail of kisses across her jaw, neck and collar bone. I skimmed my nose back up to her ear.

"I want you." I whispered huskily. "Now." I didn't wait for a reply as I trailed my hands under her shirt, feeling her flat stomach. Pleasurable electricity sparked from where my skin touched hers. I rubbed my hands up to her breasts and she moaned, arching her back so that she could be closer to me. It always thrilled me to know that I had this effect on her. I cupped her breasts lovingly and she moaned. But all of a sudden, she froze. I immediately stopped my actions, pulling my hands from underneath her top.

My nostrils flared as I searched the room with my eyes, looking for any danger that had stopped our intimacy. I came up black so I looked at my girl, confused.

"They'll hear us." She whispered, looking down embarrassed. She was referring to the guests we had and I immediately became angry. I didn't care whether they heard us or not. I was not going to stop making love to my girl because someone complained about the noise.

"Then let them hear." I growled as I placed my hands back under her top to where they were before we were interrupted. Before she could say anything else, I massaged her breasts lovingly.

"Oh Edward!" she moaned. I growled lustfully in response to hearing my name come out of her lips. I pulled away slightly and tore off Bella's shirt, leaving her top half in her lacy black bra. I realised that she was wearing my shirt, which was now ripped to pieces on the floor. _Oh well, I had already worn it once. _

I growled as the black bra covered up my girl's beauty, no matter how sexy the piece of lingerie was. I took one of the straps in between my teeth and ripped it off, revealing my Bella's top half. I looked down at her chest and didn't hesitate to place open mouthed kisses on her exposed flesh. My tongue swirled around her naval before I dipped it in. Once I pulled away slightly Bella proceeded to rip off my shirt too. I kneeled up as to help her remove the clothing and she kneeled opposite me. I saw her eyes cloud over in lust as she raked her fingers down my chest and stomach. My eyes rolled into the back of my head in pleasure. I cupped her face and kissed her lovingly. Without pulling away, my hands slid down her arms, down her stomach until they rested on the button of her jeans. I ripped off the denim as well as her underwear so she was completely naked in front of me. My eyes raked down her body as I held her in my arms; the perfect arc of her hips, her flat stomach, her curvy collar bones.

_She's fucking gorgeous!_

Without warning, Bella tore off my jeans and boxers, leaving me naked too. I watched as she marvelled at my body. But I didn't want her to look; I wanted her to _feel _me. I took her hand a placed in on my erection. She gasped and looked down at her hand.

"It's yours." I murmured. I then placed my free hand to cup her sex. "Just like this is mine." She nodded her head and I gently placed my hands on her shoulders, pushing her down onto the soft bed. I cupped her face with one hand and used the other to stroke her cheek.

"Bella." I whispered and I kissed her passionately. I loved this woman so much. All of a sudden, she flipped us over so that she was on top of me with a mischievous twinkle in her eye. I wasn't having that. I growled playfully and flipped us back to how we were and I straddled her. I grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head on the pillow.

"That was naughty Bella." I scolded playfully as i skimmed my lips around her face. "And for that you need to be punished." I nibbled her ear and smiled when she writhed underneath me. I pushed my knee in between her legs and slid into the space. I placed myself at her entrance and let her wrists go, placing my hands on either side of her head on the pillow. Gently, I pushed into her, feeling her warmth. We both moaned at the pleasure. I pulled out and pushed into her several times.

"Harder." Bella demanded. Her wish was my command. I thrust harder into her, allowing myself to bury deeper inside of her. I started picking up the pace whilst kissing her body everywhere that I could.

"Edward!" she cried. I started slamming into her even harder, with loud moans escaping my mouth. I was inside of my Bella and I was the only one who ever would be inside of her. My body started trembling as my orgasm came closer. I kept grunting as I thrust in and out of her. With one last slam, my release came.

"Bella!" I moaned as I spilled myself inside of her. I felt her walls clamp down around me as she too moaned my name in ecstasy. I buried my face in her neck, trembling from my orgasm. I wish that I could stay in her forever, but I reluctantly pulled out of her. I lay beside her and wrapped the blanket around us. We weren't cold, but it made me feel closer to her. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her head on my chest. Bella rolled on top of me and I started licking her neck.

"Eww, Edward!" she giggled. I chuckled lightly and settled back down into the pillows, my fingers trailing up and down her spine. Suddenly, she balanced on her elbows and started placing open mouthed kisses on my chest. I purred in pleasure as she continued her motions. She kissed all the way up to my neck and then down to my stomach. She looked up at me from under her lashes and my breath caught in my throat. Her lips were swollen, her eyes were dark and her hair had a messy look to it. It was sex hair. And I liked it.

"Like something you see?" she asked innocently, batting her eyes and resting her chin on the top of my chest. I growled in response and rolled on top of her. I placed my elbows either side of her and got ready to enter her again.


	21. Love Story

Chapter 21: Love Story

The Denalis had been here for a grand total of five days, but to me, it felt like an eternity. The glares from Tanya never ceased and I could tell that she was starting to get on everyone's nerves, not just mine and Edward's. Eleazer and Carmen were constantly apologising to us about her behaviour; they couldn't see why she wouldn't accept the fact that me and Edward were mates.

Peter had been unusually quiet since the encounter with Edward and it spiked my curiosity. Every time I would enter the room, he would leave. Of course, I was glad he wasn't pestering me, but still, it didn't stop me from wondering what Edward had said to him. I asked Edward once and his reply was;

"I just had a little chat with him, nothing major." Of course, being me, I believed him, but it didn't explain why he smirked the entire time like he was remembering a private joke. I simply shrugged it off.

xoxox

Alice had insisted that we have a movie night tonight. Everyone was seated in the lounge, laughing hysterically at Alice and Emmett who were both fighting to put on their DVDs.

"There is no way that us men are having a soppy romance on the screen!" Emmett boomed. He was trying to put _The Hangover _into the DVD player when Alice swatted his hands away.

"Well, us girlsare not going to watch _that_!" Alice pointed at Emmett's DVD in distaste. "And _Titanic _is not just a soppy romance! It's a beautiful film that won eleven Oscar awards. Therefore, we will put it on!" She quickly dashed to the DVD player, but Emmett got in her way.

"Let's have a vote." Carlisle decided.

"Finally, someone with a plan!" Emmett cheered. "All in favour of putting on a _real_ movie," he held up _The Hangover_, "raise your hands." Esme, Carlisle, Eleazer and Carmen all said that they were neutral on the matter but Jasper, Edward, Irina and Tanya put their hands up. Seeing that we were outnumbered by one, Alice pouted and looked down, looking like she was going to cry. I sulked slightly into Edward's lap; we only needed one vote to change the movie. But then I got an idea.

"Edward." I purred. I swivelled around so I was straddling him and leaned into his neck. I tenderly placed my lips on his throat and I heard him gulp; I smirked.

"Edward." I breathed. I trailed my lips up his throat to his chin, across his jaw and to his ear.

"Please baby," I murmured, "can we watch _Titanic_? Please?" I pulled back and pouted at him. He groaned and pulled me against his chest, kissing and nuzzling my hair.

"Sorry Em. Looks like we're watching _Titanic_." Jasper laughed. Emmett groaned as Alice squealed and darted to the DVD player.

"That's not fair!" Emmett whined as he sulked back to Rosalie.

"That's life." Rose whispered and kissed his cheek. Alice danced over t the lights and turned them off as the film started. It always used to make me cry when I was a human and I don't think that it would be any different now that I was a vampire. I quickly turned so that I was comfortably seated on Edward's lap again and leaned my back into his chest. I felt his arms snake around my waist and pull me tighter to his body. I quickly glanced around the darkened room and saw that all the couples were in a similar position to us. Kate, Irina and Tanya were all seated on the three seat sofa and Peter was in the arm chair in the corner of the room, watching the screen intently.

I soon became absorbed in the story once again however I started imagining that jack and Rose were Edward and me. I internally chuckled as my imagination got the best of me.

It was the part where Jack kissed Rose for the first time when I heard a small cry. I whipped my head around and saw Peter with venom pooling his pain filled eyes. He was watching the screen intently, but then suddenly dashed out of the room. Everyone looked around in confusion as to what had upset Peter, but they shrugged it off and carried on watching the film. But I didn't.

I had never seen Peter look so vulnerable before; I hadn't even seen Edward look that upset. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion at this new information.

"Are you alright?" Edward whispered in my ear.

"I think I need some air." I replied. I started unwinding Edward's arms from around me.

"I'll come with you." He tried to stand up but I pushed him back down.

"No. I don't want to ruin your movie time." I told him.

"But-"

"Shh!" Emmett whispered. He was watching the movie with fascination and wonder. I rolled my eyes. _So much for a soppy romance, huh Emmett?_

"Stay." I mouthed to Edward. He seemed reluctant to let me go.

"Five minutes." He mouthed back. I nodded my head and proceeded to walk through the lounge, past the kitchen and through the back door. The cool air hit me and I instantly felt a bit better; it was stuffy in that lounge.

"Why did you have to put that movie on?" I heard a voice speak. I abruptly snapped my head to the voice and saw Peter looking at his shoes.

"What do you mean?" I asked. Peter looked up and I gasped. His eyes were filled with pain and loss. He stepped forward and I instantly took a step back. He sighed sadly and sat cross-legged at the edge of the forest. He aimlessly started picking at the grass.

"No one ever did tell you how I was changed, did they?" he murmured, still not looking at me. I stared at him for a few seconds and then shook my head. He sighed again and out his head in his hands.

"Is it really that bad?" I asked quietly.

"No." He groaned, "It's much worse." He pulled his head out of his hands.

"It was my first day back as a senior at my high school. I was the most popular boy; captain of the football team, had all the girls after me. At sixteen, that meant everything. It was lunch time and I was sitting with my "crowd" when I noticed someone sitting in the corner of the canteen at one of the abandoned tables. I couldn't see their face as they were buried in a book. We all thought that the person was a nerd so we laughed about them. I was then dared to go up to them and throw food on them. Being he idiot I was, I agreed and went over to them. I picked up their tray and was about to dump their food on them when they put the book down.

"What I saw took my breath away. Looking up at me was the most beautiful pair of aqua blue eyes I had ever seen. It was a girl. She had luscious fiery red hair and beautiful pale skin. She smiled at me and I thought I had died and gone to heaven. She was the most beautiful creature I had ever seen. I quickly looked back on my friends and remembered what I had to do. I wasn't thinking straight at the time, and my popularity was more important than her so I dumped the food on her. As soon as I realised what I had done, she had run into the girl's toilets. I had never felt so ashamed of myself.

"For weeks I tried to apologise to her, but she didn't want to know. I found out from my friends that her name was Kayleigh. A beautiful name for a beautiful girl. I showered her with presents and she confronted me about it. I took my chance and apologised deeply to her. Thankfully, she accepted.

"After that, we took the time to get to know each other. The more we learned, the more we realised how different we were. I loved pop whilst she had a thing for classical. She was my opposite, my other half. I knew, even then, that I would do anything for her. I got the courage to ask her out and she said yes. I took her out to dinner and it was one of the best nights of my entire life. She was funny, kind, selfless; everything that I wasn't.

"I took her out more and more, and I soon admitted to myself that I was in love with her. On her seventeenth birthday, I took her to her favourite restaurant and confessed my love to her. Amazingly, she returned her love to me and I had my first kiss with her. Sure, I had kissed many girls, but there was electricity and passion when I kissed her. We soon became boyfriend and girlfriend and I was one hundred percent sure that I was going to marry her when we were old enough.

"But then that all changed. I had come back from a club with my friends after celebrating our victory in football when a figure emerged in front of us. My friends were much more drunk than me so pushed the person around a bit, despite my protests for them to stop, but then the person attacked us. They were very strong and they bit me. Then the pain started. I was scared and I didn't know what was happening to me. I just kept burning. When I woke up, I knew I was different. My eye sight was better and so was my hearing. My throat burned viciously. But that's when I smelt it. The sweetest scent I had ever smelt. Immediately, I chased after it. And then I saw where the smell was coming from.

"Kayleigh. With my enhanced eyesight, she looked even more beautiful, even though I thought that was impossible. I realised that she was in school, but she looked so sad. I wanted nothing more than to take her into my arms and take her pain away. But I couldn't go near her in fear of hurting her. I ran back, amazed by my new found speed when I came across another scent, so I tracked that down too, only to come across a deer. Without thinking, I attacked the animal and drank its blood. It was then that I came to the conclusion that I was a vampire.

"I drank animal blood until I felt sick and then headed back to my Kayleigh. I saw some of the guys trying to comfort her and I was filled with the blackest rage. How dare they touch my Kayleigh? I stormed into that room and stopped when I remembered the scent of the humans. They all turned to me in shock, thinking I was a new kid. But Kayleigh saw who I was. She immediately ran into my open arms and kissed me. The fire in my throat ignited, but I battled to keep in control.

"I kept my secret from Kayleigh for as long as possible but she noticed how I was acting different. Eventually I told her what I was, expecting her to go running and screaming. But she didn't. She accepted me and told me that she didn't care what I was. She still loved me so I did the one thing that I had wanted to do for a few weeks; I had asked her to marry me, even though she was only seventeen and I was eighteen, and she said yes. I had never been happier in my entire life.

"But I didn't know we weren't supposed to tell humans our secret. These vampires in black cloaks cornered us with the intention to kill Kayleigh. I fought for her as hard as I could but I watched as they murdered her before my eyes. I felt as if my soul had been ripped out of my body. I did nothing but mourn over her for a month until I started killing humans. The love of my life had been taken from me; what made everyone else so different?

"I stumbled across Alaska where Eleazer found me, only a few weeks ago. I had every intention to change Kayleigh to be my mate after we got married but the hooded figures wouldn't listen. I shamelessly flirted with every female I could, including you, trying to find a new mate to take the pain away, but so far it hasn't worked." Peter was full out crying once he finished his story and I had to hold back my sobs.

"I-I don't want you to feel sympathy for me." He choked. "I j-just ask for your forgiveness." Peter looked at me with those pain-filled eyes once again.

"I forgive you." I heard a quiet voice behind me. I turned around and saw Edward looking at Peter with pity in his eyes.

"How long have you been standing there?" I whispered to him. Edward sighed and glided over to me.

"I heard the whole thing." He murmured into my hair.

"Nothing happened between us!" Peter said quickly. Edward chuckled.

"I know Peter, it's alright. But would you mind if I stole Bella for a bit?" Peter quickly nodded and Edward picked me up bridal style and ran in the forest.

"Does this mean that you and Peter will stop fighting now?" I asked hopefully as the trees whizzed past us.

"I wouldn't say _friends_, but I'm willing to start over with him now that I've heard his reasons." Edward mused.

"Thank you." I whispered. A moment of silence passed between us. "Um…Edward. Where are we going?" A wide grin spread across Edward's face.

"It's a place that only I know of. I want to share it with you." I was touched by his gesture. I was about to thank him when we stopped in a beautiful round meadow. The grass was a lush green with purple, yellow, blue and white flowers growing in it. The moonlight shone down on the small area, making it seem more beautiful. Edward set me down on my feet and I wandered into the middle of it.

"Edward… it's beautiful." I breathed. I sank down to the dry grass and lay on my back, gazing at the stars. Edward immediately rushed to lie down by my side. We star gazed for a while and talked more about our hobbies. But I was soon reminded of Peter.

"I can't believe what he went through." I murmured, still looking at the stars.

"I know. I can't even imagine myself living without you." Edward whispered. He rolled so that he was on top of me and stroked my cheek gently. I leaned into is palm and closed my eyes.

"Then don't." I breathed. I felt his lips on mine and then they disappeared. I opened my eyes and saw him gazing at me with an unfathomable expression. Suddenly, he grabbed my hands and gently pulled me up to a standing position. Edward stood in front of me, still holding my hands and took a deep breath.

"Bella, ever since I first saw you, I wanted you to be mine. You are my life and if anything ever happened to you, I could never forgive myself. There's nothing on this Earth that I want more than for you to be officially mine, for all eternity. You are the love of my life and I will never want anyone other than you. So I ask you tonight."

Edward got down on one knee and pulled out a blue velvet box from his pocket. He opened the box and inside was a diamond ring. It had a silver band with a small circular diamond in the middle of it.

Edward's scorching eyes looked into mine, and I swear that he could see my soul.

"Isabella Marie Swan, I promise to love you every moment of forever. Will you marry me?" My eyes filled with venom. I was speechless. Never had I imagined that Edward would ask me to marry him. I thought that it was something only humans did. But, regardless, I knew my answer right away.

"Yes." I whispered. Edward's face lit up and a huge smile spread across his face; I couldn't stop myself from smiling either. He carefully took the ring out of the box and slid it onto my ring finger on my left hand. He stood up and wrapped his arms around me, spinning me round. Once he set me down, he cupped my neck with his hand and kissed me passionately and lovingly. I returned is emotions, and I could swear that I heard fireworks going off in the distance.

**Picture of Kayleigh, Peter and Bella's Engagement Ring on my Profile :)**


	22. I'll Fight For Him

Chapter 22: I'll Fight For Him

"How are we going to tell the family?" I asked Edward as I curled up to his side, still lying on the cool grass. He draped a protective arm over me and pulled me closer to his side.

"It's simple. We go in and say, 'Everyone, we're getting married.' And then show them the ring." He grinned.

"I know _how_ to!" I whined, smacking his chest lightly, "I'm just…nervous." Edward lightly picked me up and placed me so that I was lying on top of him. He stroked the sides of my body soothingly.

"What are you nervous about?"

"Reactions." I stated simply and buried my face in his shirt. I felt his chest rise and fall as he sighed.

"That's nothing to be concerned about, love. Of course, I know that they will be ecstatic with the news. But even _if _they reacted badly, it wouldn't matter. I'm marrying you whether they like it or not." Edward said with a tone of finality and I couldn't stop the cheesy grin that spread across my face. However, I only had to think of one person and the smile was wiped off my face.

"What about Tanya?" I felt Edward stiffen beneath me. I glanced up at his face and saw his eyes narrow and press his lips into a thin line.

"What about her?" He replied in a tight voice.

"I don't think she'll be happy about this…about _us_." Edward's chest rumbled underneath me as he growled.

"Her opinion does not matter at all. If she can't accept us, then I cannot accept her. I will not stand by and watch as she insults you. I swear, if she puts one toe out of line again, I will rip her head off her shoulders, and I don't care if I make any enemies out of it."

I thought that I would cry after his little speech. He was finally going to tell Tanya to back off. Sure, he had told her off before, but it didn't seem to have any effect on her. I wasn't sure if I wanted her _dead_; I just wanted her to stop being a baby about me and Edward being together. I understand that she…_likes_ Edward, but she should have realised by now that Edward was no longer available. The sooner she got that through her thick skull, the better.

I looked up towards the sky and saw the sun trying to break through the clouds.

"I suppose we should be getting back now." Edward sighed. I quickly pushed myself off him to allow him to stand when the sun burst through the clouds, illuminating the meadow in golden rays. I heard Edward gasp and I felt hands grab my shoulders and spin me to face him.

"What is it?" I panicked. He held me at arms length and looked up and down my body.

"You truly are an angel." He breathed, still looking over me. I looked down and saw that I was sparkling; like thousands of diamonds were imbedded onto my skin. If I was still human, I would be as red as a tomato.

"Lets go." I mumbled, still embarrassed. Edward took my hand and kissed my engagement ring on my finger and I giggled like a school girl. Entwining our fingers, we ran back to the house in record time. We burst through the door and entered the lounge quickly. My nerves soon took over when all eyes turned to us and I placed a nervous smile on my lips.

"Everyone," Edward began, not bothering to keep the smile off his face. The vampires looked at us curiously, apart from Alice who was practically bouncing in her seat.

"Yes, son?" Carlisle asked.

"Bella and I are getting married." He pulled forward my left hand tenderly so everyone could see the ring glittering in the faint sunlight. Silence took over for a millisecond until it was broken by a high pitched scream and something black and white crashing into us.

"Oh my gosh! Bella, please let me do your wedding! Please, please, please, please, please?" Alice looked at me with big puppy eyes and pouted adorably.

"Sure Alice." I chuckled.

"Eddie's getting hitched!" Emmett boomed as he slapped Edward on the back. I rolled my eyes; _trust Emmett!_

The rest of the hour was filled with "congratulations" and "welcome to the family". Esme was the person who got to me though.

"Finally, I have another daughter. I'm so grateful to you Bella; you have made Edward happy and I can't thank you enough. I know that you two will be very happy together." And she wrapped her arms around me and enveloped me into a motherly hug, which I easily returned.

"Thanks, mom." I whispered. She gasped and squeezed me tighter. Everyone was extremely happy for us, just like Edward said they would be. I was surprised when Peter approached us.

"Congratulations you guys. I wish you all the best in the future." He said timidly.

"Thank you Peter." Edward replied sincerely. I smiled brilliantly, happy that everything had gone smoothly.

But I caught in my peripheral vision a pair of golden eyes frozen over in shock, disbelief, hatred and anger;

Tanya.

Almost instantly, Edward snapped his head to her.

"What's wrong Tanya? Are you not happy for me and Bella?" Edward hissed from his clenched teeth. Tanya smiled sickeningly sweet at us, but I could tell that it was fake.

"Of course I am Eddie" I growled with Edward when she called him that. "I guess that I'm just _so _happy that I haven't given you my congratulations." Then she sauntered out of the room as if she owned the place. The room filled with tension until Rosalie snorted.

"Someone needs to screw her head on straight." I couldn't stop the smile that placed itself on my face. The tension died down, with help from Jasper, and the celebrations continued. Tanya still didn't return and I was happy, but I couldn't help but feel that something terrible was going to happen.

xoxox

_Isabella Marie Cullen._

_Bella Cullen._

_Edward and Isabella Cullen._

_Mr and Mrs Cullen._

These names had been running through my head all day after Edward had proposed to me yesterday. After the celebrations downstairs, me and Edward retreated to our room where we did some celebrating of our own. A lazy smile spread across my face. It was my first time at making love with him as his _fiancé_.

"Bella? Bella!" Alice snapped her fingers in front of my face.

"Huh? What?" I asked, shaking my head slightly.

"Wow Bella. I didn't know my brother was _that _good in bed." She giggled.

"Alice!" I scolded. She held her hands up in mock surrender.

"I'm just saying." She defended. I rolled my eyes. "Anyway, I think we should have lavenders, or freesias. Oh! Oh! Maybe roses?" She had spent an hour trying to come up with the best flowers to decorate the wedding. We decided that Rosalie and Kate would handle invitations, Irina would choose music for the reception afterwards, Esme would be in charge of catering and me and Alice would do the rest, although it was mainly Alice; I just replied to her suggestions with "umm" and "ahh".

Tanya didn't want anything to do with the wedding, although I couldn't really ask her because:

She still hadn't returned from when she ran off yesterday.

She hated my guts.

If I was completely honest, I wouldn't have really asked for her help anyway. I mean, I would love for us to at least get along in some way, but in the state of mind that she was in at the moment, I think that she would probably set my dress on fire as we were saying our vows.

"Bella, are you even listening to me!" Alice screeched. I couldn't help but play with her a little bit.

"Honestly?" I smirked. She shunted me off the bed and I fell on the floor with a _thud_. I was expecting Edward to come rushing up the stairs, but then I remembered that the men had gone out shopping to get tuxedos for the wedding. Edward didn't want to leave, but it took a lot of persuading from Alice and strength from Emmett and Jasper to drag him out of the house. I was also very pleased to see Edward and Peter getting along nicely too.

"Bella?" My head whipped to the door where the missing strawberry blonde was standing nervously, wringing her hands in front of her. Recovering from my shock I quickly scrambled off the floor and stood up, facing Tanya.

"Hello Tanya." I greeted formally. Her eyes darted around the room and settled on the wedding plans that me and Alice were looking at before. I saw anger flash in her eyes but it went away immediately. She turned her eyes to me.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" She asked. I was at a bit of a loss at what to say.

"Uh, sure." She moved out of the way of the door and gestured for me to come out into the landing. I cast a swift glance at Alice who looked just as confused as how I felt. Slightly reluctant, I shuffled my feet out into the landing. Tanya shut the door behind her.

"Follow me." She took off outside and darted into the trees. I had a job keeping up with her, but I managed it somehow. We ran for five minutes until we came to a deserted clearing. The clouds hung heavily in the sky, making the earth go grey. Tanya stood in the middle of the clearing whilst I cautiously stayed at the edge.

"Bella, I want to apologise for my rude behaviour towards you. It was uncalled for and childish." My eyes widened and I froze. Had she finally come to terms with the fact that Edward and I were together? I swallowed awkwardly.

"Um, it's ok." I replied uneasily. She looked down then opened her arms out for, what I assumed to be, a hug. My senses immediately went on the defensive, but I did my best to push the feeling down; this could be my only chance to start over with Tanya.

I uneasily stepped into her embrace and she wrapped her arms around me like a viper. I was a bit uncomfortable so I gave her a few reassuring pats on the back, willing her to let go.

"I should have done this ages ago." She whispered. I pulled back slightly, but she still had her arms around me.

"What?" I asked.

"This." And then she lifted her hand and smacked me in the face. The force of the blow made me stumble back a bit as her arms vanished from my body. I looked up at her gleeful face in shock.

"Oh, you have no idea how long I've wanted to do that _Swan_." She sneered. My instincts rose within me, urging me to fight back, but I didn't know how to fight.

"Why are you doing this?" I whispered. I could see that her eyes were wild as she cackled.

"What do you mean? You've brought this upon yourself." In the blink of an eye, she pinned me down on the ground, "Do you know how long I've wanted to be wit Edward for?" She hissed in my ear. Something in my brain clicked; she was going to kill me so she could be with Edward. Abruptly, she flipped me over so I was on my back, Tanya hovering over me. She began screaming and kicking my stomach.

Right then I was reminded of a human memory;

"_Welcome home Isabella." Phil sneered. He lifted his heavy boot and kicked me in the stomach several times. I did my best to hold in any noise so that Emily didn't hear anything. I was doing a good job until he rolled me over onto my back and slammed his boot down on my arm. I screamed out to the heavens, hoping that any minute this agony would end. _

All I saw was red. I could taste revenge on my tongue as Tanya's blows kept coming. I would **not **let her ruin my new life which had been given to me. And there was no way in **hell **that I was letting her have my Edward.

As Tanya kicked me again in the stomach, I grabbed onto her ankle. She squirmed as she tried to get out of my grasp. With a terrifying roar, I launched her into the trees. I flipped myself so that I was in a standing position and then crouched, ready for her attack. I spotted her charging through the trees, a look of wild rage on her face. She skidded to a halt and mirrored my position.

"You bitch!" She screamed at me. I smirked and beckoned her with my finger.

"Come on, Princess. Is that all you've got?" She snarled viciously and I growled back. We both charged at each other and made a deafening crack when we collided, like two boulders crashing against each other. I knew that the vampires at home must have heard that, so I just had to keep Tanya busy until they came.

Remembering some of the moves Edward used on the man in the shops, I grabbed onto Tanya's shirt, drew my fist back and punched her squarely in the face. She screamed and backed off a bit, but it seemed that I'd only agitated her more. _Good_.

She lunged at me with her palms out, trying to grab me. I neatly dodged and slammed her face into the mud when she was in mid-flight. I flipped her over, like she did to me, and started punching her face. She tried to kick me off but I managed to pin her legs with my own.

"I HATE YOU!" She screamed as I kept punching. I laughed as she feebly tried to claw at my body, only ruining my clothes in the process.

"I hate you too." I smiled sweetly back at her. I looked down and saw that I was only in my bra and pants, caked in mud, with bits of shredded clothing surrounding me. Suddenly, our struggling cut off as we heard fast, rhythmic footsteps coming our way and I gulped; Edward had returned. I turned back to Tanya.

"I'm not going to let you marry him." She hissed determinedly.

"Oh yeah? And how do you plan on doing that, Princess?" I sneered. She bared her teeth and spat in my eye. I snarled as I tried to wipe the venom out of it. As I was distracted, she twisted out of my grasp and bolted into the trees.

"This isn't the end, Swan!" I heard her screech as her footsteps retreated. I roared terrifyingly in response to show her that I wasn't afraid.

Once I rubbed the venom out of my eye, I turned in the direction which I knew Edward was. I only had to wait a couple of seconds before he burst through the trees into the clearing. He took one look at me and his eyes widened.

"What happened?" He growled.

"Tanya." I replied in a cold voice. His eyes turned pitch black and his nostrils flared, venom dripping out of his mouth.

"How **dare **she!" Edward roared. I was about to agree when the rest of the family entered the clearing too. Once they saw me, they raised their eyebrows, apart from Peter who looked down. I immediately looked down and saw that I was lacking in the clothes department. My eyes widened in embarrassment and I tried to cover myself up. I heard the family sniggering.

"Stop looking at her." Edward snapped at everyone. He ran to my side and took off his shirt, pulling it over me. It was just big enough to cover me to the middle of my thighs. I couldn't help but marvel at his perfectly sculpted chest and abs.

"Emmett, Jasper. Find her. I want to teach that bitch a lesson." Edward snarled. His brothers nodded and took off in the direction that Tanya went. Edward ran a hand through his hair and wrapped an arm around my waist, crushing me to his side.

"I'm so proud of you." He whispered and kissed my forehead. I closed my eyes in content. I heard someone sniffle and snapped my eyes open to see Carmen looking heartbroken. She knew that her daughter had to pay for what she had done, but she couldn't do anything about it. I almost felt sorry for her. Almost.

After a few minutes of Edward whispering sweet nothings in my ear, Emmett and Jasper returned.

"She gave us the slip." Emmett said. Edward hissed and pulled me closer to his body.

"How?" He seethed.

"She crossed over to the dog's territory. We've told them to keep an eye out for Tanya." Jasper informed us. Edward nodded and they returned back to their respected mates.

"Let's go home." Carlisle said. We all nodded and started heading back home. I was happy now; Tanya was out of our lives. But I couldn't help but repeat her last words;

"_This isn't the end, Swan!"_


	23. Revenge

**Hey guys. Sorry I haven't updated in a while but I've been swamped with exams. However, June 21****st**** is when my last exam is, then I'll be free to write as much as I want!**

**I'm sorry that I haven't responded to your views, but to clear something up, Edward and Bella have ****NOT ****mated with anyone but each other. Edward knew what he was doing because his mating instincts kicked in and felt the need to claim Bella as soon as possible. I hope that's cleared up any confusion! :)**

Chapter 23: Revenge

"Bella, may I speak with you for a moment?" Eleazer asked from the doorway of the lounge. I marked the page I was on in _Wuthering Heights_ and closed the book gently.

"Sure." I smiled. I untangled myself from Edward's arms and placed the book on the coffee table. I felt fingers entwine with mine and I looked behind me to see Edward's glorious face, beaming lovingly at me. I smiled shyly and pecked him on the lips.

Eleazer turned and led us into the kitchen area. Edward had been extremely protective of me since the incident with Tanya; he barely lets me out of his sight. We sat around the island in the middle of the kitchen. Edward dropped my and but placed in on my thigh. Eleazer folded his hands on the table and concentrated on me.

"I would like to discuss the possibilities of your power." He started. We were suddenly joined my Carlisle, who had an interested yet excited expression on his face; I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

"I have never encountered anything like it before. It's as if there is a wall that is stopping me from getting a read on her." Eleazer shook his head and glanced at Edward, "You say you can't read her mind." Edward shook his head.

"No. It's like what you said; there's a wall that's stopping me from hearing her thoughts. But I guess it adds to the mystery of her…" He trailed off, gazing at me. Someone cleared their throat.

"Yes, well. I would be very interested to see if she could _expand _her shield to protect others." My head snapped up.

"What? You mean, shield others' thoughts from Edward?" Eleazer nodded and I smirked, glancing at Edward who, in return, narrowed his eyes at me.

"Interesting." Carlisle mused, rubbing his chin in thought, "A shield. I think it is possible that she could expand her shield."

"Can we try it?" I asked hopefully. I never thought that I'd have a power, but now I did, I desperately wanted to see what I could do.

"Sure." Eleazer smiled. He stood up and glided out of the backdoor, into the garden.

"Everybody, can you come out to the garden please?" Carlisle called throughout the house. I smiled and stood up. I was about to take a step when Edward pulled me back by my arm.

"Are you sure you want to do this _now_?" Edward asked; he seemed concerned.

"Yes." I replied. He still looked worried so I cocked my head to the side, searching his face, "What's wrong?"

"I just thought…after everything that's happened…" He looked at me for a long time but I stayed in my position, blinking once.

"I'm confused." I pouted. He chuckled, looking down.

"It doesn't matter. Just…be careful, okay?" He pleaded. I nodded my head and kissed him lovingly on the lips before I bounded outside with him on my tail. Surprisingly, everybody was already outside. I saw Jasper smirk in my direction and I looked down sheepishly.

"Alright. Bella, I want you to close your eyes and try and feel your shield." I nodded my head and obediently closed my eyes. I felt around but I couldn't feel anything. I frowned slightly.

"I can't feel anything." I said.

"Focus harder." Eleazer replied calmly. I heard a soft growl. "Sorry Edward." He murmured. I squeezed my eyes tighter, trying to focus harder. But it was then that I felt it. It was like an elastic band wrapped around my mind.

"Do you feel anything?" Eleazer asked.

"Yes." I grunted, trying to keep hold of the elastic.

"Eleazer, stop it." Edward ordered. "It's obvious that it's hurting her."

"No." I cut in quickly. "It's fine."

"Now Bella, I want you to firmly grasp your shield." I did as Eleazer told me. "Good, now see if you can stretch it. Everybody, tell me if you feel anything different." He addressed everyone.

I tightened my grasp on my shield and started to pull at it. It wouldn't budge so I used more strength to pull it. I felt it shift a little bit and I gasped. Suddenly, I felt an arm around my stomach whilst the other was rubbing my back.

"Bella, please." Edward whispered. "Don't strain yourself darling." I ignored his request and continued t tug at my shield. It was starting to stretch nicely now. After a few more minutes of tugging and pulling, I heard someone gasp.

"Amazing." Edward breathed in my ear. I suddenly registered that there was someone else inside my shield.

"What is it?" Eleazer and Carlisle questioned at the same time.

"I just felt a tingling sensation." Edward murmured. I opened my eyes and my shield immediately snapped back into place.

"Sorry." I chocked. The force my shield used made my knees go weak and I starting collapsing onto the floor, but luckily, Edward caught me.

"Bella!" He asked frantically. "Are you alright?" I nodded my head as e cradled me to his chest. He looked down at me once again, searching my body, but then met Eleazer's eyes.

"That's enough." He said with finality. Eleazer nodded his head understandingly as Edward scooped me up and took me back to the house. We headed upstairs and into our room. Edward gently laid me down on the bed and then crawled behind me. He rubbed my arm soothingly as I tried to regain my strength. Edward buried his face in my hair and we stayed like that for a few hours.

xoxox

"How are you feeling?" Edward asked as he nuzzled further into my hair.

"Much better." I sighed. I gently sat up on the bed and Edward followed suit. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and placed his other hand on my stomach. I sighed and leaned into him. If Tanya hadn't have been here, then my life would have been perfect. Thinking about Tanya made me frown. I knew that she wouldn't give up Edward, but Alice hadn't seen her plan anything. Peter understood that me and Edward were supposed to be together; so why couldn't Tanya?

"What's wrong?" Edward asked, sensing my mood change. We were so attuned to each other that we didn't even need Jasper's gift to tell what the other was feeling.

"Tanya." I mumbled. Edward visibly stiffened.

"I won't let her hurt you." Edward determinedly said, holding me tighter.

"I know." It was quiet for a few seconds.

"Is that what's been bothering you?" he asked. I shrugged my shoulders and he exhaled sharply.

"You don't need to worry, love. As soon as she shows her face, we'll be ready for her." I nodded my head and closed my eyes, resting my head on his shoulder.

"It's all my fault." I whispered. I felt Edward shift from beside me. I felt pressure in front of me as Edward's hands cupped my face.

"Look at me." He said firmly. I exhaled gently and cracked my eyes open, seeing Edward's face a couple of centimetres away from mine.

"This is not your fault Bella. I should have seen this coming. I should never have allowed Tanya-" he spat the name with such hatred, "to get near you." He stroked my right cheek lovingly. "I'm so sorry." I shook my head as his sweet breath washed over me. Without thinking, I closed the gap between us as my lips met his. Edward responded excitingly and I tangled my fingers in his hair. Still keeping our lips connected, he gently pushed me down onto the bed. He released my lips, only to trail kisses across my jaw and down my throat. I could feel desire and lust coursing through my body as every fibre of my being ached for Edward. I quickly tore off his shirt and trailed my hands down his perfectly sculpted chest and muscles. He growled with pleasure and reattached his lips back to mine.

Edward starting undoing the first few buttons on my blouse when all of a sudden, the bedroom door banged open. I shrieked and pushed Edward off me, causing him to fall off the bed and land with a thud on the floor. I looked at the doorway to find my pixie sister with her hands on her hips.

"Alice!" I scolded at the same time Edward growled. She simply rolled her eyes.

"Sorry for the interruption," she apologised sarcastically, "but I need to speak with Bella."

"Well, you can't have her." Edward growled at Alice, getting up off the floor and kneeling behind me on the bed. He wrapped his arms around my waist from behind and kissed my neck passionately before resting his chin on my shoulder, smirking at Alice.

"Fine." Alice sighed, examining her nails, "Then I guess Bella doesn't want to see her wedding dress." I instantly perked up. Edward had announced that our wedding was going to be on August 13th which was two weeks away. He still wanted to leave a little time to make sure that Tanya wouldn't interrupt things. Since I knew that our wedding was only a short distance away, I had become incredibly excited about it.

"Oh Edward!" I jumped, "Please can I see my wedding dress? Please?" I looked up at him and gave him puppy eyes which Alice had taught me to do.

"Fine!" He groaned, "But Alice, I want her back in two minutes tops." Alice nodded her head vigorously and I squealed in delight.

"Thank you!" I kissed his nose as he dropped his arms from my waist.

"I'll be waiting right here." He whispered and kissed my ear, sending shivers down my spine. I hastily got up and followed obediently as Alice grabbed my wrist and dragged me to her room.

"Wait here." She commanded as she closed the door behind us. She danced into her walk in closet and came out with a garment bag. She placed it on the bed and I shuffled closer to it to get a better look. Alice quickly unzipped the bag and what I saw took my breath away.

The white dress was absolutely beautiful. It was strapless and long, with a 'V' cut in the middle. It was simple, yet gave off the vibe of elegance.**(A/N; Picture of Bella's Wedding Dress on my profile)**

"Oh Alice." I breathed, "It's beautiful." Alice started bouncing up and down.

"Really? You like it?" I shook my head and her face dropped.

"I love it." I stated. Alice's smile immediately stretched back on her face. I reached out my fingers and gently stroked the smooth, silk material and I marvelled at the dress longer.

"So, what are you wearing?" I asked Alice. She looked at me a bit confused, and cocked her head to the side.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I need to know what my maid of honour is wearing at my wedding." I rolled my eyes. It was silent for a moment until Alice squealed.

"Oh my God!" she launched herself at me and wrapped her arms around me, locking me in a vice grip. "Thank you Bella! Thank you!" I patted her back.

"Oh!" She gasped suddenly. She quickly released me and whizzed to the dress, zipping it up and putting it back in her closet. "I have so much to do! Quick, you go back to Edward whilst I-" I didn't hear the rest of her sentence as I was already racing back to mine and Edward's bedroom. I entered briskly and widened my eyes at the view in front of me. Edward was lying in bed with his hands folded behind his head, looking up at the ceiling. I could tell he was naked, even though the bed sheets covered him from his waist down. I licked my lips.

"Hello, love." Edward greeted, smiling his crooked grin at me and turning to face me.

"Hi." I said shakily. Edward opened up is arms, inviting me to join him. I obliged happily and lay on top of him as his arms constricted around me.

"That was a very generous thing you did." He noted, kissing my temple. I shrugged.

"It was nothing, really." I replied. Edward's fingers travelled under my chin and lifted my face to his. Immediately, his lips captured mine and we began to finish what we started before we were interrupted by Alice.

xoxox

"Ok, now move your knight there." Edward murmured in my ear. I picked up my knight and placed it on the square he was talking about.

"Stop helping her!" Jasper whined. I smiled as Edward chuckled, resting his head on my shoulder. Jasper thought for a moment and moved his bishop. Alice waltzed into the room and picked up a flower vase, turned and walked back into the kitchen.

"Move your queen to here." Edward subtly pointed to the square he wanted me to move my piece to. I complied and then smiled smugly.

"Check mate." Jasper groaned and smacked his forehead. Suddenly, I heard and audible gasp and the smashing of glass on the floor. Me, Edward and Jasper immediately ran into the kitchen to see Alice frozen in place. Jasper ran up to her and wrapped her in a protective embrace.

"Alice! What do you see?" Jasper panicked. I felt Edward stiffen beside me. The rest of the family quickly ran into the kitchen as well.

"What happened?" Carlisle demanded.

"Tanya." Alice stuttered. Everybody froze.

"No!" Edward shouted. He immediately wrapped his arms around me, as if he was protecting me from something.

"What? What about her?" Irina asked fearfully. Alice sucked in a deep breath.

"She's bringing an army of newborns to Forks."


	24. What Do We Do?

Chapter 24: What Do We Do?

Grave silence took over the family after they had processed what Alice had just said. The only thing that was heard were the shuffling of feet as the vampires went to their respective mates to hold and comfort them. Soon after, dry sobs starting echoing throughout the room. I was still in shock about what had been done; what Tanya was doing. She was sending us all to our deaths.

Edward simply guided me to the couch in the living room, placed me on his lap and held me extremely tight. Occasionally, he would kiss me and nuzzle into my neck and hair, but he didn't utter a word. No one moved for hours as the same thought was running through everyone's head;

We were doomed.

xoxox

It was approximately one in the morning when I heard footsteps leave the kitchen. Carlisle and Esme appeared at the doorway of the living room. They looked calm, but I could tell that inside, they were very worried.

"Edward? Bella?" Carlisle asked. As soon as he took a step in our direction, a vicious snarl erupted from Edward. He snapped his jaws at Carlisle, who immediately retreated back to his place by Esme's side. Once he was there, Edward growled and nuzzled his face into my neck, keeping his coal black eyes fixed on Carlisle. I stared at him wide-eyed.

"What's happening to him?" I whispered fearfully. I tried to lean away from Edward, but as soon as I did, he growled and pulled me back to him, crushing me to his chest.

"It's alright Bella." Carlisle soothed, "He feels threatened as you are in danger. All of us are feeling it, but because you two are newly mated, it's affecting Edward the most." All through his explanation, Carlisle's wary eyes stayed on Edward.

"When will it stop?" I questioned whilst looking at Edward who was glaring at Carlisle with an eyebrow raised, daring him to come closer.

"It depends on how long it takes him to control his emotions. Just comfort him; assure him that you're alright." I nodded and proceeded to stroke Edward's cheek. He didn't relax out of his posture, but I saw a bit of amber come back into his eyes. Quietly, Carlisle led Esme out of the room, leaving me and Edward to be alone.

xoxox

I stayed with him until morning, softly stroking his cheek, running my fingers through his unruly bronze hair; anything that would make him calm down. The rest of the family had joined us half an hour ago, talking tactics about what to do when the newborn army arrived with Tanya. Edward stayed out of the conversation, stroking my hair and kissing my wrists and neck, but I listened intently.

"Do the Volturi know about this?" Carlisle asked.

"I don't know. Everything to do with the newborns is fuzzy, but I have seen them discussing what to do about it." Alice answered coolly, although I could see the frustration in her eyes.

"Why do we need the Volturi? It's only a couple of newborns; we can take them." Emmett stated enthusiastically.

"It's not as simple as that." Jasper drawled, his southern accent clear, "Newborns are strong, stronger than you Emmett. If one of them gets a hold of you, then you're dead. They're bloodthirsty creatures. Once they've started, there's no stopping them." A short silence ensued.

"How many are there?" Eleazer asked. Alice's face went blank for a moment before she shook her head and sighed.

"I'm not sure, but I think there are around thirty, including Tanya."

"If the Volturi won't intervene, then what are we going to do?" Esme questioned, looking up at Carlisle. I could see worry in her eyes, but it didn't seem to be for her; it seemed to be for her family.

"We fight!" Emmett jumped it before Rosalie grabbed his shirt and pulled him back down next to her.

"Don't be so silly Emmett!" Rosalie scolded, "We can't ju-"

"Emmett's right." Jasper whispered. We all looked at him astonished.

"What?" Kate asked.

"Judging by Alice's visions and the amount of time Tanya has had, these newborns seem pretty inexperienced. Tanya wouldn't think to look for powers in the newborns; she would just look for strength. We have at least four powers that we can use to our advantage. And even if any of these newborns did have powers, Bella would be able to use her shield to-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Edward seethed, "Bella is not going to be fighting anyone."

"Edward, she could be our only hope." Jasper tried to reason with him. Edward merely growled, picked me up bridal style and dashed out of the door. He ran outside into the cool morning air and darted through the trees with me in his arms. Seconds later, I found us at our meadow.

"Edward, what are you-" But I didn't get to finish my sentence as Edward's lips crashed onto mine. I gasped at the sudden contact which allowed Edward's tongue to slip through my lips and into my mouth. Edward set me on my feet and fisted my hair, bringing my face closer to his. I moaned in pleasure and proceeded to kiss him back just as fiercely. Without breaking the kiss, Edward ducked slightly and wrapped his arms around my legs, bringing them up around his waist. I moaned again and closed my eyes as his lips attacked my neck and throat, awakening my lust and desire. I wrapped my arms around his neck to allow him to gain more access to my throat. He moved his hands to my bum and squeezed. I snapped my eyes open and growled lustfully. I used my body to push Edward onto the dew-covered grass, with me falling on top of him. I crushed his lips with mine as I straddled him. I felt his hands rub up and down my sides and I pushed down on him, teasing him. Edward moaned and growled at the same time, pushing his hips up towards me. I attacked his lips with mine once more and trailed my hand under his shirt, feeling his strong stomach muscles. I licked my lips and pulled the shirt off him, leaving him topless below me. I trailed my fingers down his bare skin, electric sparks shooting up my arm from where our skin made contact. As I was distracted, Edward swiftly undid the buttons of my blouse, again, and immediately snapped my bra off, leaving me topless too. His eyes clouded over in lust as he kissed my lips and gently rolled us over so that he was on top. My hands reached down to remove his jeans with success as he did mine. Our bodies moved in synchronisation as we took off each other's underwear. We were now completely naked. Edward skimmed his nose down my face, neck, chest and eventually stopped on my stomach.

"Mine." He breathed against it, kissing my stomach softly. Without warning, he hovered over me again and propped himself up on his elbows. He gently kissed my temple as he nudged into me.

"Ooh." I moaned as I felt him inside of me again. My reaction must have pleased him, for he pulled back slightly then thrust into me. I moaned in great pleasure and hooked my ankles around his waist as he continued to pump into me. I rocked my body and raised my hips to meet his as we shared passionate kisses and moans of pleasure during our love making. After what seemed like an eternity, I finally climaxed, with Edward following soon after. We made love another seven times before Edward became somewhat coherent again.

xoxox

"Again!" Emmett boomed. I rolled my eyes as I heard everyone else in the clearing sigh. This would be Emmett's fifth time!

We had decided to go with Jasper's plan; we would fight Tanya and her newborns. However, there was a catch.

I wasn't allowed to fight.

I had had a screaming fit when I found out I couldn't fight. I had completely ignored Edward's demands to calm down and ran up to our room, locking the door behind me so I could sulk in peace. It was all Edward's idea and I could tell from the way that Jasper looked at him accusingly. Edward constantly banged on the door that night, demanding that I let him in. When I still refused, he broke the door down.

I was brought out of my musings by Irina waving her hand in front of my face.

"Bella? Bella!" I shook my head and blinked.

"Umm, sorry." I smiled sheepishly. Irina rolled her eyes playfully.

"Shall we try again?" She asked sweetly. I sighed but nodded, concentrating on grasping my shield. We had eventually made a deal that if I wasn't allowed to fight, then I would use my shield to protect the family. Again, Edward was reluctant but thankfully the family sided with me.

I stretched my shield over Kate and she nodded, indicating that she had felt its effects. I then tried to spread it over Eleazer, who was further away, watching Emmett train with Jasper, a calculating look on his face. However, once it touched him, my shield snapped into place. I growled in frustration; I couldn't seem to get it right!

"Don't worry Bella, you'll pick it up eventually." Irina soothed, touching my cheek. After offering me a small smile, she sauntered over to watch the fight between Emmett and Jasper. Kate soon followed after and eventually I shrugged and decided to watch too.

I saw Emmett's bulky form charge at Jasper, who was standing still and calm a few metres away from Emmett. As Emmett was about to lunge for him, Jasper was suddenly on Emmett's back, his teeth next to Emmett's throat.

"Never go for the obvious kill." Jasper scolded Emmett as he climbed off him. Emmett's nostrils flared in annoyance.

"Again." He ordered.

"No, it's my turn." Edward stated, gliding gracefully towards Jasper. Emmett grumbled profanities under his breath as he trudged back to our group. Edward and Jasper stood opposite each other. I didn't know who would win this fight; Edward could read minds, but Jasper had the experience.

They both waited patiently until Jasper swiftly moved to strike Edward. At the last second Edward moved out of Jasper's way, causing Jasper to miss him. Their fight continued like this for ages until Jasper started to get irritated.

"You can't just keep dodging attacks Edward. You have to fight me." Jasper snarled as he continually lunged for Edward.

"What if I don't want to?" Edward asked smugly. A smirk flitted across Jasper's face.

"Fine." He said. Just as he was about to lunge for Edward again, Jasper swiftly turned so he was facing me and lunged. I knew Jasper wouldn't hurt me, but it didn't stop me from taking an involuntary step backwards.

"NO!" Edward roared. As Jasper was in mid-flight, something crashed into him, causing him to be knocked off his path. I looked to Jasper and saw him sprawled beneath Edward's snarling and trembling form. He held Jasper by the throat as he pinned his arms above his head.

"HOW DARE YOU TRY AND HURT BELLA!" Edward screamed in Jasper's face. Instead of recoiling or wincing, Jasper simply smirked at his brother.

"Now that's what you need to do when you fight the newborns." Edward looked confused for a minute before realisation dawned on his face; Jasper was just using me so Edward would attack.

"Don't ever do that again." Edward threatened as he helped Jasper up. Jasper rolled his eyes and dusted himself off as Edward ran over to me.

"Are you ok?" I rolled my eyes along with Jasper.

"Of course I'm ok." I replied.

One by one, Jasper fought the rest of the family, excluding me thanks to Edward, and I could see the improvement in their fighting skills. We practised for three nights before Alice informed us that Tanya and her newborns would be arriving in five days. But I knew we were ready.

However, it occurred to me that my family was fighting _for _me. I know that Edward had made it clear that I wouldn't be fighting, but right now, I didn't care. Tanya had threatened mine and Edward's relationship and if she wanted me, then so be it. Because one thing was for sure;

I wasn't walking away from this battle without fighting Tanya myself.


	25. And Now, You Die

Chapter 25: And Now, You Die

Death. I could taste it in the air. I could practically _feel _it radiating around the muddy clearing. I looked down from the tree that I was perched on and saw my family, anxiously awaiting Tanya and her newborns. I had been told to stay in this stupid tree so I didn't get hurt and so I could still protect the family with my shield, which I had perfected. To make my safety even better, Edward decided he would guard the stupid tree; how was a tree going to stop newborns from getting to me?

The crunching of leaves was enough to freeze my family and myself. I saw all the males subtly step in front of their mates, touching them in someway, holding their hands or touching their shoulders. Edward looked up at me, love and concern evident in his eyes. I smiled sadly at him, wishing I could hold him, kiss him; anything! I felt around myself and sighed in relief when I felt the lighter in my pocket that Edward had given me last night.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" I heard a shrill voice ask sarcastically. Everyone snapped their heads to the trees where the voice came from. Soon after, Tanya emerged, a sadistic smile on her face. I was shocked to see her eyes were ruby red. She was followed by around thirty newborns with the same deathly eyes, prowling and snarling behind her. I saw Tanya search around the field until her eyes stopped on Edward.

"Hello, love." She greeted, smiling. Edward growled at her. She rolled her eyes and laughed. She stopped half way across the clearing and held up her hand, signalling the other vampires to stop as well.

"Tanya, please." Carlisle stepped forward, but her eyes strayed back to Edward, licking her lips. I only just managed to conceal my growl.

"We don't need to fight." Carlisle continued. Suddenly, she exploded with laughter.

"Of course _we_ don't need to fight!" she cackled. "These," she waved her hand in the direction of the newborns, "are for the slut that Edward claims is his mate." Edward suddenly flew at Tanya, but Jasper and Emmett held him back. My grip on the tree branch tightened and it groaned in protest. I cringed slightly as Tanya's eyes found mine.

"Oh, there she is. Look guys." She pointed to me, "This is the one I was telling you about." The newborns growled at me and I was momentarily confused; what had she said about me? Edward immediately crouched in front of the tree, warning the newborns with a growl.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Go get them!" Tanya screamed. My eyes widened as the newborns charged at my family. I immediately cast my shield around them just before the newborns reached them. My family lunged at the newborns at the same time the newborns lunged for them. They crashed into each other with a loud bang and then I knew.

The battle had begun.

I could do nothing but watch as my family twisted out of the grasps of the newborns, but as Jasper had predicted, they were going for the obvious kill. I looked at Edward and saw that he was fighting off two crazed newborns who were trying to get to me. However, there was a third one behind him that he hadn't seen. The newborn crouched, ready to pounce on Edward.

"Edward, behind you!" I screamed. Edward glanced behind him and just managed to dodge the oncoming newborn.

"You can't win!" Tanya shouted over the snarls and growls of battle. All of a sudden, the trees started to shake. I looked around confused until I saw six wolves the size of horses burst into the clearing, destroying newborns in their path.

"NO!" Tanya screeched. I looked over at her and saw her slowly stepping back, beginning to retreat.

"Oh no, you don't." I growled. I swiftly jumped to the next tree as I saw Tanya dart from the scene. I followed her in the treetops, not letting her out of my sight for one second.

As soon as there was space, I leapt from the tree and into the air. I pushed myself down to the earth, using gravity and landed on top of her. She screamed and kicked but I would not budge.

"Get off me!" She screamed, her arms flailing about the place.

"How about no?" I smiled. I took her head in between my hands and just as I was about to twist, a pair of muscular arms clamped around me and hoisted me off Tanya. I snarled and twisted my head around, ready to attack the offending being. But when I saw their face, I froze.

"You." I whispered. Scruffy brown hair, tight muscles, red eyes; it was _him_.

My creator.

"Hello, my dear." He smiled and leaned in closer to me. I gasped and struggled harder to get out of his grip, but the more I struggled, the tighter he held me. His eyes narrowed.

"Stop struggling!" He hissed. I refused and struggled more, desperate to get out of his arms which were sending chills through my body. I started to scream when his hand clamped over my mouth.

"Don't. You. Dare." He seethed. I looked at him with wide eyes until I heard a cough. We both looked to see Tanya with her arms folded across her chest and her foot tapping the dirt impatiently.

"Well?" she huffed.

"Well what?" My creator asked back.

"You've got her now. That's my part of the deal done." I looked confusingly between them.

"Oh, how silly of me. Bella, this here is Bruce. You might recognise him." She smirked. "Anyway, Bruce is a dear friend of mine so imagine how angry I was to discover that his mate had run away from him. He told me what you looked like and, you see, as soon as I saw you, I knew you were her. Not only that, but you manipulated Edward into loving you when I was the one who was meant for him. So, we made a deal. If I deliver you to Bruce, then you'll be out of the way so me and Eddie can get together." Venom leaked into my eyes as I realised that I would never see Edward again. I would be taken away and Tanya would get Edward; she had won.

Bruce started to pull me back as Tanya waved at me. My scream was muffled by Bruce's hand but I dug my feet into the dirt, trying to slow him down. Suddenly, Bruce vanished from behind me and went crashing into the trees. Tanya's eyes widened as she looked over my shoulder. I spun around and gasped as I saw who had thrown Bruce off me.

"Peter." I gasped. He smiled a little at me before he walked over and stood slightly in front of me.

"What are you doing?" Tanya seethed as Bruce stood beside her, glaring murderously at Peter, "Get out of the way!"

"No." Peter's voice was determined. "You have no right to do this Tanya. When will you get it through your thick skull that Edward doesn't love you?"

"He does love me!" Tanya hissed. I glanced at Bruce and saw a smirk light his features.

"Hey Peter. How's Kayleigh?" Peter and I froze at Bruce's words. I heard Peter swallow loudly a few times and saw his mouth open and close.

"H-How do you know about her?" Peter's voice was rough yet low with anger.

"Well, I couldn't let you spread our secret, could I?" Suddenly, Peter roared and lunged at Bruce, pinning him up against a tree by his throat.

"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO TOLD THE VOLTURI ABOUT KAYLEIGH!" He screamed. Peter drew his fist back and started punching Bruce mercilessly. After several blows, Bruce managed to grab Peter and throw him into the trees in the opposite direction, quickly stalking after him.

"Meddling boy." Tanya muttered. I saw her take a step in their direction to help Bruce, but I wasn't having that. Before she could take another step, I grabbed a fistful of her hair and flung her behind me. I heard crashes as she collided with the branches. I crouched in her direction, ready in case she tried anything, but she suddenly flew out of the trees, punching me square in the face. I flew backwards, but managed to do a back flip in mid-flight so I landed on the balls of my feet.

"It's on, bitch." I growled at her. She screeched and flew at me again. Remembering some moves from the Cullen's and Denali's training sessions, I twisted out of her reach and elbowed her back, slamming her to the floor, face first. Once she was in that position, I grabbed her hair and slammed her face of the floor again. Somehow, she flipped herself over and kicked my stomach, sending me into the trees. Branches and twigs snapped underneath me as I fell. I landed on my back but as soon as I landed, Tanya jumped on top of me, her eyes wild. She quickly grabbed my head and started to pull. I felt my neck crack as she started to twist. Pain shot through my body and I realised that I am going to die.

But then I thought of Edward. What would happen to him if I didn't live? What would he do if he found out I had given up and died? No, I had to live; for Edward.

Using the last ounce of strength that I had, I grabbed onto Tanya's shoulders and pushed so she landed on her back with me on top of her. I quickly smacked her hands away from my throat and didn't hesitate to put my hands on her head and twist. A sharp metallic sound ripped through the trees as Tanya's body lay limp underneath me. In my hands, her head lay with her face a mixture of horror and anger. I sighed, defeated as I stood up and dragged her mangled body back to the isolated field. I willingly tore her limbs off her body and gathered wood, placing it on the field and lighting it ceremoniously, watching in sick satisfaction as her body burned into ash. I tossed her head in the flames that licked into the air. Black, sweet smelling smoke filled the air and my lungs and I was filled with accomplishment; Tanya was finally gone from my life.

It was then that I remembered Peter. I snapped my head to look in the direction of where Peter and Bruce went and my eyes widened in horror as I saw familiar black smoke rising there.

_Oh no._

Without thinking, my feet ran at a blindingly fast speed to the new smoke. I slapped twigs out of my way and dirt flew out behind me. I ran for a few seconds until I skidded to a halt at the sight before me.

A bonfire had been lit, similar to my own. I could make out body parts sticking out of the flames. I was about to cry out when I saw a figure on the ground.

A figure with blonde hair.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I ran over to Peter. But then, my relief vanished as soon as it came. Bite marks marred Peter's face and arms. He was whimpering in pain as he clutched his torso. Venom started pooling around him and his whimpers of pain got louder.

"Shh, Peter." I cooed, "I'm here."

"B-Bella?" His voice was coarse, but I hushed him again, stroking his cheek.

"It's going to be ok, Peter." I assured him, "I'm going to take you to Carlisle." I started to put my arms underneath him.

"No!" he moaned. "I don't want to live!" I froze at his words.

"What do you mean?" I asked cautiously, not attempting to move him.

"I've been living without her for so long." Peter whispered, meeting my eyes, "It hurts too much. I thought I could live without her, but I can't." Venom leaked in my eyes as I realised what he was asking of me. "Don't cry." Peter whispered. "But please, let me die. I want to be with her again; I want to see her." A gentle hand was placed on my shoulder. I looked up to see Edward staring down at Peter with sadness.

"Is this what you really want?" Edward asked quietly. I looked him over but saw no injuries on him other than his shirt being ripped in three places.

"Yes." Peter whispered. Edward nodded as a sob escaped me. I leaned over Peter and placed a soft kiss on his forehead and stood up, turning around so I didn't have to see what would happen next.

"Goodbye Peter; my brother." Edward whispered. I heard the familiar shredding of metal and the burning of wood. Another sweet scent hit me and I opened my eyes to see myself surrounded in smoke. I wailed as Peter's body burned, but I didn't turn around to see it. A pair of arms wrapped around my torso from behind and a head was placed on my shoulder.

"Are you alright?" Edward whispered. I nodded my head numbly.

"Is anyone hurt?" I asked; it was the first ting that came to my head.

"No. The newborns have been destroyed, but no one in the family got hurt' Except for Peter." He replied, gently kissing my shoulder and nuzzling his face into my neck.

"It's over." I whispered.

"Not quite." I blinked a couple of times and Edward took my silence as an invitation to continue. "The Volturi are coming."

**Picture of Bruce on my Profile :)**


	26. Reunion

Chapter 26: Reunion

Me and Edward quickly ran back to the main clearing. If there was one thing about the Volturi that we knew, it was that they were _not _patient people.

As I ran, it confused me to no end as to why the Volturi had arrived. They must have known about Tanya and her newborns before now; why were they here?

We burst through the clearing and once again, my lungs were filled with sweetened smoke. I wafted the black cloud away with my hand and spotted the Cullens and the Denalis in a semicircle, waiting for the Volturi.

Edward took my head and led me to our family but as I got closer, I noticed two vampires that I had never seen before. Both were men however one had dreadlocks whilst the other had brown short hair. As I ventured even closer, my eyes widened as I saw Irina holding hands with the one with the dreadlocks and Kate was holding the other one's hand. As Edward registered them, I felt him stiffen.

"What the hell?" he hissed. I realised that he couldn't see the contact between the couples.

"Edward, look at their hands." I murmured. I saw him squint slightly through the smoke but when he saw their hands, he immediately relaxed.

"Oh." Was his reply. I giggled.

"Silly fool." I pecked him on the lips and made our way to stand by the family.

"How long Alice?" Edward asked, releasing my hand and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"Thirty seconds." She answered slightly breathless. She must have been slightly fazed by the fight. I took the opportunity to glance around at my family and saw that it was only their clothes that had been slashed a few times. Irina caught my eye and I raised my eyebrow at her, glancing pointedly at her entwined hands. She simply giggled and looked down.

"They're here." Alice breathed. The atmosphere in the clearing changed from victorious to tense almost instantly. I heard low growls reverberate from Edward's chest and I smacked his chest lightly to shut him up. I was also surprised to hear growls from the two newborn males too.

Suddenly, everything went quiet as four figures, hooded with black cloaks, stepped out of the shadows of the trees. The two on the outside looked rather big and muscular; one of them could give Emmett a run for his money. The two in the middle were shorter, but one looked slightly lankier than the other. As they came closer, fear gripped at my heart. We had done nothing wrong and yet these people were stalking towards us as if we were serial killers. After what seemed like an eternity, they finally stopped and lifted their hands to pull off their hoods.

The one on the far left of the line was male with dirty blonde hair. His features were in the form of a scowl yet twisted, as if he'd eaten something sour. He stood with his back straight and chest puffed out, trying to look menacing.

The vampire on the far right was also a male. He looked bulkier than the blonde haired man, but still had the sense of intimidation. His dark hair looked ruffled and a smirk spread across his face as he took in our work.

The two in the middle were a boy and a girl. They both looked about nine but the boy was taller than her. He had brunette hair that was swept to the left. Again, he scowled as he took in our group, but he looked bored.

However, the girl was a completely different story. Her face was blank as she looked at my family. She had blonde hair that had been pulled into a tight bun on the back of her head. She was smaller than the others, but I could see that she could do some real damage. They looked so similar yet so different.

"Jane." Carlisle nodded respectively. She glanced at him in acknowledgement but continued to search us with her eyes when they stopped at the bonfire. A sick smile spread across her angelic face.

"Had a little campfire did we?" she asked in a high voice. I was momentarily stunned as I recognised the voice. I shook my head of that thought; I had heard of the Volturi and knew of what they did, but I'd never actually _met _them.

"It seems you've missed a few." She continued, her ruby eyes fixed on the two newborns. Kate and Irina snarled defensively.

"Indeed sister; it seems they have." The boy by her side agreed, nodding his head.

"I'm sure you're aware of their situation." Edward replied icily. Jane stared at him before she sighed.

"I am." Suddenly, she looked at me. I gasped as memories came flooding back, hitting me full force. Her birth, feeding her, playing with her, laughing with her, her birthday, taking her to school, her death.

Emily _Jane_ Swan.

Emily _Jane_.

Emily.

Shock and hurt ran through Emily's eyes before she composed herself, wearing an icy mask.

"I see you have acquired a new member." She nodded at me, but I didn't respond; I was still frozen at the fact that my baby sister was staring me out, "What's your name?"

I opened my mouth, and then closed it again. My throat was dry and I felt like I was choking on the air. My own sister didn't know who I was.

"Speak!" she demanded. I took in a big gulp of air.

"Bella." I answered. She looked thoughtful for a minute before she shrugged and turned away.

"What's happened to you Emily?" I blurted out before I covered my mouth with my hands. I saw my family as well as Emily tense. Emily spun around to face me as shock, surprise and confusion clouded her face. I kept staring at her until her anger flared.

"You!" She pointed an accusing finger at me and I flinched from her tone, "Come here!" A snarl ripped out of Edward's throat but I placed my hand on his chest, letting him know that it was ok.

I hesitantly took steps towards Emily, praying that she would recognise me. I stopped four feet in front of her and reluctantly looked in her blood filled eyes. I cringed slightly at the reminder that she was a killer. She grabbed my chin and roughly pulled me down to her level.

"How do you know?" she hissed so that only I could hear.

"You don't think I wouldn't recognise my own sister?" Emily looked confused for a moment as she searched my face again until realisation dawned on her face, causing her eyes to widen.

"Oh my God." She breathed. She loosened her grip and moved her hand from my chin to cup my cheek.

"Izzy?" she whispered brokenly. I sniffed and looked down for a minute before I brought my eyes back to hers and nodded.

"Hey Em." I whispered back, my eyes filled with venom. Emily gasped and the next thing I knew I was being tackled to the ground with small arms wrapped around me. I looked up and saw Emily's face with a massive smile on it but with her eyes filled with venom as well; she truly looked like an angel. I looked slightly to my right and saw Edward hovering over us, arms outstretched. I turned my attention back to Emily.

"I missed you so much!" she sobbed into my chest. I rubbed her back like I used to, to calm her down and I felt her muscles start to relax.

"I missed you too." I breathed in her ear. "I thought you were dead." She immediately stiffened and looked up at me with a scowl on her face.

"Is that what they told you?" she asked bitterly.

"Huh?" I replied, confused. She huffed angrily.

"I didn't die that day; I was taken. These men with black cloaks broke into my hospital room. I cried and cried, wishing you were there to protect me but you weren't. I kept screaming for you, but they promised me that everything would be taken care of. They kidnapped me and pushed me into a car, then on a plane, then into another car. I was taken to this castle where they tutored me for four years until one of them bit me. They told me what I was when I woke up and I was horrified; not because I was a monster, but because I would never see you again!" she wailed. I stroked her hair soothingly.

"But your eyes." I observed.

"I know." She sighed, looking down. "I tried to feed off animal blood, but they wouldn't let me." Anger bubbled up inside of me for a moment. I inhaled calmly, attempting to keep my anger at bay. I heard a cough and looked around, seeing fourteen pairs of eyes staring at us.

"Oops." Emily giggled. She turned her face to look at her companions, "I guess you're a bit confused." They nodded their heads simultaneously. She rolled her eyes and winked at me. As soon as she got off me, Edward helped me up, wrapping me in a tight embrace.

As the sun set, Emily introduced me to Alec, Felix and Demetri. She explained to them about our past, which resulted to me explaining to how I winded up with the Cullens.

As the Volturi and my family discussed the situation, me and Emily spent the night catching up with each other. I told her about Tanya and she was glad of what I had done. We were recalling our days when we were human when Irina and Kate came sauntering up to us with their men following like lost puppies.

"Hey Bella!" Irina called. They both started giggling as I raised an eyebrow at them. I glanced at Emily questioningly, but she shook her head and shrugged.

"This is Laurent." Irina introduced the man with dreadlocks. I smiled and nodded at him as he did the same for me.

"And this-"

"Is Garrett." Kate finished off smugly. I greeted him with a nod and a smile as he waved his hand at me. I suddenly realised that my whole family now had mates. I heard Emily sniffle by my side and my motherly instincts kicked in.

"What's wrong?" I asked her, grabbing her shoulders and turning her to face me.

"It's just that everyone gets their happy ending but me." She pouted. I was slightly hurt that she wasn't happy with me, but then I thought of an idea.

"Would you like to come to our wedding?" I asked as Edward came over and wrapped his arms around my waist. She glanced up at me in excitement.

"You mean you're getting married?" she bounced, looking between me and Edward. I nodded, "Oh! Yes please! When is it?"

"Five days." Edward answered as if he'd been thinking about it for ages. Emily squealed and threw her arms around us both.

"Of course I will go! Wait, I don't have a dress!" she panicked. Suddenly, Alice came over.

"You see, that's where I come in." Alice draped an arm around Emily's shoulder and they started walking off together, talking about dresses. I sighed and leaned into Edward's body.

"I want her to be my flower girl." I told him firmly. He nodded and placed a loving kiss against my neck.

"Home?" He asked. I spun around in his arms and draped my arms around his neck. I leaned up and kissed his lips passionately. We were finally free from Tanya, free from danger. Our tongues melted into one another as I pushed my body closer to his. Before he got carried away, I pulled away, only to lean my forehead against his.

"Home." I agreed. Edward smiled and gave me another beautiful kiss and pulled away, leading me back to the house.


	27. Mates For Eternity

Chapter 27: Mates For Eternity

The woman gazing back in the mirror could not be me. She looked elegant, her pure white dress flowing down to the floor, trailing behind her, her brunette hair cascading down her back in soft curls, the dress clinging tightly to her perfect body, her face beautifully enhanced with makeup, glowing in happiness.

No, it was not me.

"Oh Bella! You look absolutely beautiful!" Esme gushed as she ran to hug me.

"Be careful of her dress!" Alice warned from the makeup chair that she had Emily pinned to. Esme slowed her movements and gently hugged me, being careful not to ruin my dress. After I let go of her, my eyes immediately went to Carlisle.

"You look gorgeous Bells." Carlisle smiled, giving me a hug too.

"You don't look too bad yourself dad." I smiled. Since the encounter with Tanya where I almost died, I realised how close I was to the Cullens and I had started calling Esme mom, Carlisle dad, Eleazer uncle and Carmen aunt. Plus the fact that Carlisle was giving me away today.

Today.

I was getting married today.

"There, all done!" Alice clapped. Not too long after I heard Emily squeal with delight.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she screamed. Alice had placed her in a lavender dress which matched her own. **(A/N; Picture of Alice & Emily's Dress on my profile)**

"How long before we have to go down?" I asked nervously.

"Two minutes!" Alice chirped. My eyes widened as I realised that I would soon be Edward's wife.

"Then I'd better get going!" Esme smiled. She gave me a kiss on my cheek and headed downstairs. I closed my eyes and took a deep, calming breath from my nose, calming my nerves. I heard a low throaty chuckle and snapped my eyes to Carlisle.

"Nervous?" he asked, amusement clear in his eyes.

"Is it that obvious?" I asked sarcastically. He chuckled again.

"It's always nervous on the first time."

"First time?" I quizzed, raising an eyebrow. He smiled brilliantly at me.

"Yes. Emmett and Rosalie have been married forty six times." My eyes widened.

"Forty six?" I asked incredulously; surely I had misheard. Carlisle simply nodded. "Wow." I murmured.

"It'll be forty seven when we've finished high school." Alice piped in but somehow, it didn't surprise me.

"I think I'll only do it once." I decided, followed by laughter from both Carlisle and Alice.

"Oh Bella, here." Alice said, handing me a bouquet of lavenders. I sighed as I breathed in their heavenly scent. I saw Alice give Emily a basket of Rose petals and hand her some blue contacts. Emily grumbled as she put them in, making her blood red eyes look violet. She had promised me that she would try to start feeding on animal blood.

"It's time!" Alice squealed. I instantly heard shushing from downstairs as somebody started playing my soft lullaby on the piano. Alice gently pushed Emily towards the open door as she glided downstairs, occasionally spreading flowers as she walked. I quickly lifted my veil and placed it in front of my face. Carlisle linked my left arm in his right, placing his hand on top of mine. My engagement ring shone in the light and I smiled down at it. Alice winked at me as I heard the wedding march. Alice danced gracefully in front of us as we descended down the stairs. I sneakily looked to the piano and was shocked to find it being played by Rosalie; I didn't know she could play! Her hair was tied up in an elegant bun with a blood red dress clinging to her body, down to her feet.

As I entered the room, everybody was standing and suddenly gasped and started whispering at how beautiful I looked. I ducked my head shyly, embarrassed about the compliments, but when I looked up again, I quietly gasped. Edward was waiting for me at the alter, a loving smile on his face. I looked over his body and knew that my heart would have been beating a mile a minute if I were still human. He looked absolutely stunning in his tuxedo, his hands clasped in front of him, waiting for _me_. **(A/N; Picture of Edward's Tuxedo on my profile)**

I had the sudden urge to run up the isle and kiss him senseless, but I managed to refrain. I saw Minister Webber looking through his Bible as I was coming up the isle. I subtly looked around and saw most of the school here, with part of the Volturi and of course, the Denalis. Before I knew it, we were up the isle. I hugged Carlisle and he handed my hand over to Edward, who took it in his right hand. Carlisle went to stand by Esme and I saw Jasper, who was Edward's best man, nod at me. I looked up as Edward lifted the veil off my face and put it behind me. We both smiled at each other as he stroked my cheek. We both turned to Minister Webber as the crowd sat down.

The wedding was short and sweet. Me and Edward exchanged such powerful vows that some of the girls were in tears. He placed my wedding band on the finger with my engagement ring and I did the same for him. **(A/N; Picture of Edward & Bella's Wedding Rings on my profile)**

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." Minister Webber told us, smiling. Edward smiled too, nodded and turned to me. He placed on hand on my waist and the other one cupped my cheek as I placed both of my hands on his chest. We both leaned in until our lips met. As they did, applause rang out through the room as our lips melted together, pouring with love and passion. We soon pulled away and were immediately greeted with hugs and congratulations. Everyone was then told to move outside to the gazebo where the reception was being held.

Edward wrapped his arm around my waist as we led the crowd outside. It wasn't cold which was good for the humans. We all gathered around the dance floor where me and Edward were supposed to dance first. The song "_My Heart Will Go On_" played as me and Edward gently danced to the music. At the end of the song, Edward kissed my lips, earning a chorus of "aww" from the crowd before they applauded once again. After that, the dance floor was free for everyone and food was up for grabs. Me and Edward cut the cake together, even though we weren't going to eat it.

The night was filled with laughter and dancing and for once, I felt truly happy. There was no guilt, no sadness, no anger; just pure happiness.

As the afternoon carried on, Edward dragged me to thank everyone for coming and to hear messages from loved ones.

"Welcome to the family." Carmen greeted warmly as she hugged me gently. I spotted Kate and Irina with Laurent and Garrett and they raised their glasses to me, cheering, causing me to laugh. But then I saw Emily in the corner, sulking.

"I'll be back in a minute." I whispered to Edward over the music. He nodded and turned to Eleazer, who started congratulating him. I glided over to Emily and sat down beside her.

"What's wrong?" I asked, my voice concerned. She shook her head.

"Nothing." She mumbled. I tilted her chin with my finger.

"What's wrong?" I asked again, gazing into my eyes. She stared back for a minute before sighing.

"I just wish I could get my happy ending." She said, looking down. I sighed with her.

"There's someone out there for you." I assured her. I looked around and suddenly saw one of Angela's little brothers, Owen. He was about 11 years old with scruffy black hair and brown eyes. I noticed that he was looking at Emily with love in his eyes and I smirked knowingly.

"Hey Em, who's that?" I asked innocently, pointing to Owen. She glanced up and when she saw him, she gasped, her mouth hanging wide open. I giggled lightly.

"His name is Owen." I nudged her and winked before I stood and went to find Edward.

"Owen." I heard her whisper behind me. I found Edward talking to Demetri but his back was turned to me. So I covered his eyes and leaned up to his ear.

"Guess who?" I breathed and he shivered delightedly. He spun around and held me in his arms, resting his cheek on the top of my head; I had discarded the veil a while ago.

"I missed you." He whispered, before I could respond, Alice came over t us.

"Come on Bella!" she squeaked and pushed me in the direction of the house.

"What Alice?" I asked, clinging tighter to my Edward.

"You need to get changed to go on your honeymoon!" I looked at Edward.

"I'll see you in a minute." I mumbled and he chuckled.

"I'll be waiting, Mrs. Cullen." I melted when he called me that and kissed him quickly, allowing Alice to drag me away. We ran up the stairs and entered Alice's room. She locked the door and flew to her closet, throwing a midnight blue strapless dress with black netting and black ballet flats. **(A/N; Picture of Bella's Honeymoon Dress on my profile)**

I took off my wedding dress and slipped on the blue dress. I ruffled my hair a little, sighing in relief as I didn't have to have it perfect anymore.

"Ok, your trunks are in the car and Emmett will be driving you to the airport." Alice informed me, handing me a white cardigan.

"Where is Edward taking me?" I begged. Edward had kept it a secret from everyone, but Alice must have seen where we were going. She shook her head and smiled.

"He'd kill me if I told you." She giggled. "Now go!" she gently pushed me out of the door. I went down the stairs and saw everyone gathered around the front door. I spotted Edward leaning against the doorframe, watching with a smile as I walked over to him. He had changed into a light blue button down shirt with dark blue jeans and dark grey trainers. He held out his hand to me and I grasped it firmly in mine.

"Are you ready?" he whispered in my ear.

"For what?" I replied, confused. He chuckled and ran outside where we were suddenly bombarded with confetti. We made it to the limo and ordered Emmett to drive. He laughed but complied, speeding out the drive and onto the main road. I sighed, leaning onto Edward's chest.

xoxox

We made it to the airport after an hour. Emmett got out suitcases out of the boot and handed them to Edward. We said our goodbyes and got on a plane to Rio, but Edward said it was only stop. On the plane, I kept seeing human eying me and Edward, but I laid my head on his lap and he stroked my hair whilst I kept trying to guess where we were going.

Once we got off in Rio, Edward took me down to the harbour where we jumped in a speed boat. We travelled quickly as I watched the sunset in the west. After half an hour, we were finally there.

"Bella, do you see that light over there?" Edward pointed in front of him. I looked up and saw a glowing light. As we got closer, I saw an outline of a small island. I could see a jungle surrounding the beach with a little cabin on it.

"Where are we?" I murmured.

"This is Isle Esme." Edward smiled.

"Esme?" I choked. It wasn't possible, was it?

"It was a gift from Carlisle to Esme. They let us borrow it for a while." Edward slowed the boat down and we came to a stop on the beach. Edward grabbed the suitcases in one hand and lifted me up bridal style in the other. He jumped out of the boat and made his way towards the cabin. He kicked open the door and carried me over the threshold. I instantly fell in love with the cabin as it felt homely. Edward switched on all of the lights until we stopped in the bedroom. Once he switched those lights on, my eyes immediately fell on the white king-sized bed located in the middle of the room. Edward put me down and left for a moment to put the suitcases away. I walked over to the large window, which was also a door, and saw a lagoon located just outside of the cabin. I was suddenly aware of the cool fingers that trailed along my neck.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come for a midnight swim with me?" he whispered, trailing his fingers down my back. I gulped and nodded my head. I slid the door open and was met by the cool air. I took off my ballet flats and cardigan and ventured out onto the sand as it sank softly between my toes. When I was near the water, Edward pulled me to him so my back was against his chest.

"I was thinking, now that we're alone, we could be more…thorough." He murmured against my exposed shoulder. I shivered in delight and nodded my head. Edward gently spun me to face him, and I looked up into his gorgeous eyes. I undid the buttons on his shirt and he dropped it to the floor. Then, I pulled off his jeans as he gently pulled off my dress. Our chests touched and electricity ran through my whole body. I looked down and saw that he had removed his shoes and socks so I took off his boxers as he took off my panties. We were both stark naked now and Edward brought me in for a slow kiss. I started to feel aroused, wanting him, needing him. Edward's hands explored my body hungrily. He plunged his tongue into my mouth and nipped my lower lip. I gasped and responded, pushing our bodies closer together. I broke the kiss and he took my hands, walking backwards into the water, tugging me along. I didn't look at anything but his face as we waded into the warm water. We kept walking until the water was waist high until Edward stopped and wrapped his arms around my waist. He pulled my in for another passionate kiss before leaning his forehead against mine, looking lustfully into my eyes.

"I love you, Bella." He whispered.

"I love you too, Edward." And I did with all my heart because we were mates.

Mates for life.

Mates for eternity.

**The End**

**Thank you all for reading my story! I really didn't expect it to do well at all. I want to say a big thank you for my readers and a particularly big thank you to my reviewers who supported me and encouraged me to finish this story.**

**Don't worry, I will be back very soon with another story for you as I have a few good story ideas already, so keep checking my profile for anything new! **

**Thank you all once again!**


	28. Sequel?

**Hey guys! :)**

**Ok, so I've been thinking about this story quite a lot and am undecided whether to write a sequel or not. I would love to be able to write a Twilight fanfic again and I've had some inspiration for a sequel.**

**I would love to know your thoughts on whether I should write a sequel or not because I know that some readers don't like sequels to stories. **

**Please let me know and I love you all for reading my story; it's gotten over one million views which is craaaaaazy! *_***

**I hope you've all had a great Christmas and an AMAZING New Year! 3**

**xxLuAshxx **

**P.S. I've had a New Year's bet with my friend to see who can get the most Twitter and Instagram followers this year as a bit of fun. If you want, please follow me on one or the other or both just for some fun and the links can be found on my profile. ;)**


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